Here We Go Again
by Shmack1812
Summary: "You can go home when the tank says you can."
1. Prologue

**Throughout this story there are Music tracks, real world characters/organizations that are mentioned. I do not own the rights to ANY of them.**

 **I do own my OCs though, so don't steal em. That 'll just be a shit day for both of us.**

 **Mostly you though.**

 **Cover art was done for me by Crowbar. You can find her at paintingsfromouterspace. She does great work and is awesome to work with, will be linking the imgur album with the rest of her works she's done for me.  
**

* * *

 **PROLOGUE**

 _If you had told me a while ago that I'd be deploying to a different world and completely changing an entire way of life? I would have looked at you and laughed, I might've even told you to piss off._

 _"That'll never happen, I get out in a month."_

 _Of course, I should've known better. Hell, any self respecting Marine or soldier should. Just when you think you're done, the military grabs you and throws you at something else. Of course, what can you do? What can **we** do? USMC, "You Signed the Motherfucking Contract." _

_But that's our lot in life and we **own** it.  
_

 _The shit that happened to us over there, the experiences we shared, the things we saw...that sort of thing never leaves you. Can you blame us though? Magic? Fantasy creatures? Thousands dead by our hands? Everyone that went over there is being called the "Gate Generation". Funny right? And here I was thinking being part of the Afghan generation was something special. Then again, I suppose there's a tagline for every generation of troops.  
_

 _Maybe we just lucked out, not often you get to go off to a different world huh? Lucked out...maybe that's not the best way to describe it, but if the shoe fits wear it right?_

 _We didn't think about all that out there though, at least, we tried not to. That's a lot to cram into a young man's head you know? So we laughed, we smoked, winked at the "Locals" and hoped our superiors didn't catch wind of it (Which of course, they did regardless). We learned, we taught, broke out of comfort zones._

 _And we killed... **a lot.** More than any man should ever have to._

 _Was the campaign a success? Hard to say, I mean we've made a lot of progress, but there are still guys over there and more coming and going daily. After all, it **is** an entire world.  
_

 _Either way, that "Gate" completely flipped the script on everything we thought was logical in our world. Nothing was ever the same after it opened, and nothing still hasn't been the same since._

 _Someone had to write about it you know? Put our feelings down on paper, funny right? You'd think being a tank crewman is all explosions and saving the day. Fist bumping and blasting rock music as the enemy runs away from you._

 _You couldn't be any further from the truth..._

 _So here it is, all of it, everything from beginning to end. Whether you want to judge us for who we are or what we did is up to you, I couldn't care less to be honest. I did my part, I protected my brothers and we laid down the armies of tyrants._

 _And you know what?...Part of me would gladly do it all over **again**._

Excerpt taken from Jasper Kincaid's(Corporal, USMC, 2D Tank Battalion, Charlie Company) autobiography,

"The Gate Generation"


	2. Meet The Tankers of Here We Go Again

**Something that should be said right now, all of the tankers you're about to read about are based off guys I served with.**

 **That been said, I want them to receive the recognition they deserve. This story simply couldn't have been done any other way to be honest, the interactions you're going to see might as well be me quoting them.**

 **Well, as far as not being in a fantasy world goes.**

 **That been said, we're proud of our service so before you go waving the "America Strong" flag really think long and hard before doing so. Both I and my fellow veterans acknowledge the faults our nation has carried out, of course any sane minded person would do the same for their own.**

 **Right?**

 **The purpose of this story is to show service in its purest form. Our goals, habits, the long road taken before and during enlistment, all of it. Hell, you might just learn something about who we are as Marines.**

 **Now let's go through that gate shall we?**

* * *

 **Meet The Crew of Here We Go Again**

 **Jasper Kincaid "Four-Eyes"  
**

Well, I'll go ahead and say it. Jasper is me, or rather the me that could have been if all this happened and my deployment in Afghanistan didn't go so smoothly. His mannerisms and way of looking at things is exactly how I would handle all of this. Especially if I had to go pull off some otherworldly bullshit.

Obviously due to security reasons, I can't tell you the specifics, but you can safely assume that a lot of his background is based on mine. Jasper is me reliving my time in the Corps and in a way being able to extend it. I'd gladly do my time in all over again, well almost all of it. The point is, my enlistment lives on in Jasper and like I he too will drop his seabag and go home someday.

One important thing to note, I was only ever a driver or a loader. Though I had a pretty good understanding of the gunner's station. You start as a driver and work your way up, you'll see why I did this.

Let it be known now, everyone on my deployment came back home alive. I never killed a man, but I saw some shit. I saw corpses personally, I've seen what coax fire can do and I do still live with night terrors. My deployment may not have been guns and glory for my tank, but the stress and the anxiety isn't something I just made up. The way i portray Kincaid isn't to blow my actual deployment out of the water, but rather to shed some light into some of the struggles veterans deal with. In doing this I had to talk to some of my closest friends who had to pull triggers on the enemy. Showing Kincaid the way he is shows the strength that veterans have in overcoming their issues and pushing on through it all.

* * *

 **Darian Wilkes Jr. "Rampage"**

Darian is 100% based off of my old loader and roommate. The same man I went to tank school with and the same man I deployed with. I ate slept alongside, drank, and even looked for girls with this man. He was a brother to me, and still is.

The real Rampage got out a long time ago though, in fact he would have already been out long before the events of this story.

The nickname Rampage is the sum total of all his mannerisms. Every quote, everything he does is exactly what the real Rampage would do. For all his tendencies though, there is a very intellectual individual. He see's the Corps and life for what it really is, a game. A complex game where the only people who succeed and find joy are those who stand firm in their ways and aren't afraid to speak their mind.

Only people close to him ever saw his other side, my old crew in particular and any other Marines we hung out with. Where I have book smarts for the most part, he has "street smarts". He taught me a great many things about how people are and the deeper darker side to the way the world works. So here he is, fighting alongside Kincaid. Just like he would with me if we had to go do this, at least If he was still in.

He just laughs whenever I mention this story to him though, "Nerd!" is usually the most tame out of his "compliments".

* * *

 **Parker Elton "Honcho"**

Elton, the the brains behind the group's brawn. The man who can keep Rampage in check and make even Officers take a step back. Just like another close Marine in my life.

In keeping with his nickname, this guy was indeed the head honcho of our group of miscreants. When the weekend came? This guy had the plan and the place. Like Rampage's character, he too has a side that only those close to him could ever see.

He deployed with me, but he wasn't in my platoon (much like Kincaid's deployment). He was also never a tank commander, but you bet he could be if he had the chance. Like my old Master Sergeant always said, "Tanking is a thinking man's game." Elton and consequently the guy he's based off of just so happen to be thinking men.

I still keep in close contact with him and he reads this story too. Believe me when I say though, he doesn't care if anyone likes his character. He's just impartial like that, he's also out of the Corps as well.

* * *

 **George Benitez "Little John"**

Little John, oh this guy was fun to make at the request of another good friend of mine.

If you can imagine a short burly dark skinned Hispanic man from the Dominican Republic? Then Little John fits the bill perfectly, our little sidekick.

He was one of the first few friends the real Honcho and I had made in Charlie. Though he wasn't as "senior" as us, his interests and personality fit him right into our group. In fact he was one of the few guys in Charlie we got along perfectly with at all.

"Boot" is the term used for someone who has hasn't deployed yet while in the fleet. Some boots aren't too bad, but a lot of them just don't understand how things really work, especially if their MOS is in combat arms. The real Little John was one of those rare ones.

He's glad you guys enjoy it, he's also pretty pissed off that he's the only one from our group still in the Corps, poor guy.


	3. Bad News Doesn

**Here We Go Again  
**

 **Chapter 1: Bad News Doesn't Get Any Better With Age**

 _"The fundamental mission of the tank platoon is to close with and destroy the enemy. The platoon's ability to move, shoot, communicate, and provide armored protection is a decisive factor on the modern battlefield. It moves, attacks, defends, and performs other essential tasks to support the company team or troop mission. In accomplishing its assigned missions, the platoon uses fire, maneuver, and shock effect, synchronized with other maneuver elements and with combat support (CS) and combat service support (CSS) assets. When properly supported, it is capable of conducting sustained operations against any sophisticated threat._

 _The tank platoon can survive and win in battle, however, only if it is well trained, effectively led, and highly motivated. Crews must be aggres-sive, and their tactics must reflect the tempo and intensity of maneuver warfare. Platoon training must prepare them to operate in hostile territory with the enemy to their front, flanks, and rear."_

 **MARCH 15TH 2015, 1600 HOURS, CHARLIE COMPANY OFFICE, SECOND TANK BATTALION CP, CAMP LEJUENE, NORTH CAROLINA**

"What the hell do you mean bad news?!"

Jasper Kincaid slammed his hands on the office desk, his face red with anger.

Sitting across from him, his close friend and platoon mate Corporal Parker Elton sat with hands behind his head. Elton had known Kincaid for years and as a result he knew how best to deal with the onslaught of irritation.

Sit there and let the man carry on.

"Bro this is bullshit, I get out this year."

Elton sighed. "Oh shut up bro, you don't get out till November. You still got plenty of time."

"But aren't they supposed to be going for other companies? I mean we just got done with DFT ***** at goddamn Pickett."

Elton finally sat upright. "Dude I'm just as pissed as you are, but this is coming down from waaaay high. You should be happy I'm telling you about it now." He paused for a moment as he fixed the rolled sleeves on his desert MARPAT blouse before continuing.

"The battalion is already short changed as it is most of the other companies are bracketed in for training and most of our company is gone. We're the ONLY platoon that has the bodies for this, is what is man."

"Platoon? Bro we're headquarters, like we're not even supposed to be sent anywhere. We have four tanks, two of which are the CO's and XO's and two others that are left overs from both of the old platoons. We're going against the very fabric of logistics itself! Who sends a headquarters platoon out to Japan for combined arms training, shit ain't adding up."

Kincaid sighed and rubbed his eyes in frustration. "Bro the company is supposed to be divesting soon anyways! What are we just putting that on hold? For fucks sake we don't even have a company first sergeant anymore."

Elton put his hands up and rolled his eyes. "You're telling me this like I have answers to it all bro. I don't, just take it for what it is man. Stranger things have happened before."

Kincaid sighed and began to calm down, he'd been through this ordeal before. Prior plans had been made and the Corps once again demanded its pound of flesh for some bullshit training op, but this time, it was personal. After four years of faithful service to the Corps Kincaid was tired. From the swamps of Camp Lejuene to a deployment to Afghanistan, he'd done his part.

With just a few months until his EAS ***** checkout process could kick in, hearing this news stung deep.

Who was he to complain though? He was only a Lance Corporal granted a veteran lance who had performed his duties as faithfully as possible, that still wasn't enough for his voice to gain merit even in the tank community. After realizing just how much bullshit he'd have to deal with just to pick up Corporal he promptly gave up on that notion and focused on just doing his job right and staying out of trouble.

Well, not getting caught while getting into trouble.

Kincaid walked to the company fridge paying close attention to drop change off in the cash jar before grabbing a cold Monster out of it.

Like many other Marines, Kincaid was a frequent consumer of energy drinks. The only difference was he was a frequent consumer even when he wasn't on the job. The sight of him having an energy drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other was regular to say the least.

Cracking open the cold beverage he took a whiff of the satisfying vapor and began to drink as he returned to the desk.

 _I fucking hate the green ones._

Making his way back to the desk, Kincaid could hear a crackle as Elton cracked his knuckles. Years of working on tanks certainly did wonders for one's joints. A fact not lost on either of the two men as Elton began to talk a look of assurance on his face.

"Dude look on the bright side its for a good cause, we'll be going to Japan and I know your anime loving freak ass will just love that. Anyways, word on the grapevine is with all the crazy shit going on in the world the Japs want their boys to be effective in combined arms. If shit pops off with China-"

Kincaid sighed. "Which it won't."

" _ **If** _ it does, the Japanese want to be assured that we can operate our tanks with em."

"Because the Chinese would be able to even set foot on Japanese soil in the first place."

Elton rolled his eyes. "Because everyone thought the Iraqis would be able to handle things once we pulled out too right? Should I keep going?"

Kincaid scoffed.

Elton shrugged. "Look man I'm just telling you now before we get the actual formation. Better to bitch now than later. Best get used to it bro weird shit's all over the place lately. Hell, goddamn Shinzo Abe amended the Japanese constitution so that they can technically deploy now-"

"Deploy in support." Kincaid raised a finger.

"Whatever, like I said bro. Shit's going crazy."

It was true. With the recent takeover of Iraq by the newly formed terrorist group ISIS as well as their expansion into several other countries, the world was on a bit of a powder keg. Russia had moved into Syria during the recent months and had begun fighting them there as well, or rather, notionally. Anyone who was anyone knew they were there to support Syria's regime in its fight against rebels, a small price to pay for Russia gaining influence there.

This was, of course, hardly a good follow up to the events that had transpired during their recent annexation of Crimea. The former and latter of which had put NATO on edge enough to not only consider looking back into combat operations in Iraq but also start massing armor near the Baltic states as part of a Black Sea rotation.

Which was what the rest of Kincaid's company were busying themselves with before the company was set to disband.

The usual "Everything Sucks" vibes.

Kincaid sighed. "How long we there for?"

Elton scoffed. "A few months."

"A few months?!"

Elton nodded. "Yeah a few months, then when we get back you can get ready to get the hell out of this shit."

"How we getting the tanks there?"

"Remember the training tanks over at 29 Palms-"

Kincaid dragged his cheeks down causing his lower eyelids to sink at this statement. "Is there even an advon* for that?"

"Relax the admin shit's already been done. We literally just have to get to California and get the tanks onto the ship."

Kincaid's expression twisted into one of shock. "Wait, fucking First Tanks took care of that?"

"Yeah crazy right? That's uncharacteristically sweet of them." Elton got a quick stretch in before returning to his original position. "If you had let me finish you would've heard that they're relieving us once we're done there."

"So why don't they just go first? They are called _**First**_ tanks."

"Bro I don't fucking know alright?" Elton pointed to the two chevrons on his blouse's collar with a black calloused hand. "See this? CORPORAL, not officer. I don't know bro."

Assured he wouldn't get anymore answers to the questions that defied all logic Kincaid sighed. "So, it's the Black Sea Rotation...but Pacific style. With a flip flop platoon of tanks."

"Yeep."

"Gonna assume Camp Fuji. It's the only place tanks could possibly go."

"Bingo."

Kincaid scratched his head, it was abnormal for tanks to train in Japan even if it was Camp Fuji Manuever Center. In fact usually the only places tankers ever trained was either back on base, Mojave California, or one of the many Army bases along the east coast. Shaking off the notion as just another unexpected bump in the road that was his Marine Corps career Kincaid merely stood there before trying to get understand the situation for what it was one last time.

"I still don't understand why don't they just send some of First Tanks. They're west coast, makes more sense to send them. Pacific is practically their backyard."

Elton shrugged. "Beats the hell out of me. Maybe they're being prepped for the Middle East? I mean I've been hearing chitter chatter about some training thing eventually going on in Kuwait or some shit . Then there's the shit going on in Saudi Arabia with the Houthis n shit."

"Makes sense I guess." Kincaid groaned. "And don't tell me about the Saudis, fucking dumb asses can't even use our own shit right."

"Yeah, I've seen the videos." Elton scoffed remembering the shaky Youtube videos of Saudi M1A2 tanks being destroyed by Houthi rebels, an issue related to the undisciplined crews not the tanks. Still, it slandered not only the vehicle's reputation but that of the American tank community.

Nobody liked amateurs export tanks or not, and the Saudi's were right on the heels of the Iraqis who were suffering similar defeats in their own export Abrams tanks.

Elton sat straight up fixing his sleeves once more before sliding a gear list alongside the required Marine net courses they all had to take. Marine net courses, the bane of any enlisted Marine anywhere. Tedious online classes that usually were just a check in the box, they were meant to brush a Marine up on skills or knowledge he'd need in order to operate in a given area.

They could range from basic language classes all the way to culture classes. More often than not they were simple click-throughs and easily wrapped up in an hour. Kincaid sighed as he reviewed the information laid out in front of him, he had a few months to gain a basic understanding of Japanese language and culture as well as do OPSEC* classes.

He suddenly raised an eyebrow as a realization came to him. "So, let me ask you this. Obviously Wilkes is going go to be our loader as usual, but who the fuck is going to be our driver?"

Satisfied they were going to be down a crew member Kincaid stood proud, a smile on his face. Elton promptly leaned over the desk with an even bigger smile.

"Oh, we had a boot drop today he's already checked in and at the barracks."

Kincaid grabbed the papers and his eight-point cover before storming out.

"What the _**fuck**_!"

After a few moments Elton smiled, looking at the Monster on the table. "Hey bro you forgo-"

Right on cue Kincaid came right back in. Gulping the rest of the drink in one go, he burped and tossed the can away. He then proceeded to storm out the door.

Meanwhile, the company XO, Lieutenant Aldritch came out of his office, his arms folded as he shook his head. Like most lieutenants he was pretty young and also pretty stereotypical looking to boot. Well groomed hair, a young face that oozed with purpose. Many of the Marines had often wondered if there was some sort of factory mass producing young gallant faced men before sending them off to Officer Candidate school.

Aldritch hadn't been in charge of Charlie Company long, but he was a fast learner and many of his men had began to respect him for that. It was also worth nothing that he had big shoes to fill seeing as how Charlie's actual CO was long gone and off in a different unit. Truth be told the lieutenant couldn't exactly fault Kincaid for his outburst, the man had a point. The company was meant to be breaking apart towards the end of the year another part of the Corps wide downsizing process. With first and second platoon rotating through operating in Bulgaria and Mojave the company was very much indeed shortchanged.

Of course, since most of Headquarters was comprised of Marines who hadn't seen much in the way of deployments it almost made sense why the brass had chosen them. Experience was a godsend, and most of these very same Marines would be sent off to other companies within the unit once the company disbanded.

The Corps did work in mysterious ways after all.

"So he always bitch this much?" Aldritch groaned as he dismissed the prior notion in his mind focusing on the now.

Elton logged off the company computer, grabbing his I.D. card and cover before responding with a grin.

"Oh for about three years sir."

"Pleasant."

Once Elton sent up the afternoon report he was given permission to take his leave for the day. Now all he had to do was catch up with Kincaid, his ride out of there. As he darted out the company office and out the CP door, he could already see Kincaid making his way over towards his Jeep. He rolled his eyes before yelling.

"Hey fucker! You gonna leave me here? You know my Mustang is still in the shop!"

Kincaid sighed and merely stood beside his Jeep, sighing as he began to unlock the door. "Sorry man, I'm just pissed off!."

Elton sighed as he made his way down a concrete path flanked by freshly cut grass on both sides. Another humid North Carolina day, already he could feel himself starting to sweat. As he made his way down further, he paused before looking over towards his right.

There it was, the inert statue of an woodland camouflaged M1A1 Abrams. It sat there with its turret over the side, its gun elevated and in the air. To the uninitiated, the slopes and angled armor looked almost space age. Despite the design and technology the family of tanks the A1 belonged to had been around longer than half the tankers alive, thirty years longer to be exact. It was a tried and proven design one still being constantly upgraded even up till now. Of course the Marines didn't get the latest and greatest.

That didn't stop the A1 from being any less lethal than the newer A2 SEPs the Army had however. Especially not with U.S. Marines crewing them.

Parallel to the Abrams was the statue of an older M60A1 Patton, a tank from an earlier generation of warfare. Larger than its younger cousin it had all the trademarks of a typical "Hollywood" tank. Olive drab, massive, squat and almost turtle like. The tank was there to serve as a reminder of how far tank technology had come, a throwback to the machine Marines used to serve in.

Whoever had left these the tanks there had no doubt positioned them this way in order to capture a sense of stoic grandeur. They had once served in a past life, but were now gutted and filled with cement. Stage pieces to mark the CP as tanker territory. Elton couldn't help but reach out and give the side of the Abrams a reassuring pat on the side, a sign of respect despite all the stress the machine had brought him.

For many tankers such as himself this, tank had been a home, a way of life. Something that kept them safe during deployment. It was their craft, their way of war considered almost an art by some. Marine tankers considered themselves practically elite, a small community in an even smaller branch of service.

The Corporal shook his head before continuing on his way. He'd have plenty of time to "marvel" at the Abrams in the coming months, all through back breaking labor. As he arrived at the Jeep he noticed Kincaid's smirk.

"And you say I love tanks too much."

"Man if you don't shut the hell up. You almost left my ass here, don't think I forgot."

"My bust bro, I'm just pissed off that's all."

"Yeah well me too, but you know shit is what it is. No sense bitching about it." Elton paused before shrugging. "Look man, beers on me tonight?"

"Fair enough."

As the two clambered into the Jeep Kincaid sighed before taking his cover off and lighting a cigarette. As he let his window slide down to let the smoke air out, a shit eating grin formed on the lance corporal's face.

"I was gonna stop by the PX anyways."

"You trying to get smacked upside the head?"

"Just saying, heh."

Turning the key into the ignition, Kincaid let the Jeep's powerful V8 engine roar to life before putting the vehicle into reverse and getting them out of the parking lot. Meanwhile, Elton had plugged his MP3 player into the center console and began to play something mellow. He was just as pissed as Kincaid was, he just did a better job of hiding it.

* * *

 **Elton's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 1: Flying Lotus "Mmmhmm"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _"It cannot hide; just be who you are."_

Soon the entire vehicle shook as the vehicles custom sound system kicked in. As Elton began to bob his head to the beat of the music, he took a cigarette from Kincaid's pack in the dashboard and lit up one of his own before turning to face his friend.

"So Abigail looks just like me now, crazy huh?"

Kincaid laughed as he took a drag from his cigarette. "Yeah well she's stubborn like you, how's the wife doing?"

Elton chuckled as he looked out the window. "Stubborn like her husband. She's pissed we're leaving too."

The two Marines laughed for a while until Elton asked the question he knew Kincaid was dreading.

"So...how's the trips to the MFLC* been going? Still having those night terrors?"

As the Jeep halted at a red light Kincaid took another drag.

"Jesus man, can we not talk about this? They're getting better alright?" Kincaid didn't avert his gaze from the light as Elton put a hand on his shoulder.

"No we _**can**_ talk about this. We're brothers man, I worry about you sometimes that's all. Besides, it's been what? Months since our last training op? I just want to make sure you're gonna be okay."

As the light turned green, Kincaid sighed and took another drag giving the jeep some gas.

"Yeah...not as much, though. Same old shit, waking up in the dark trying to figure out where I am. Sometimes, though...sometimes _**it**_ comes back."

Elton removed his hand from Kincaid's shoulder and looked back out the front window taking another drag before sighing.

"I don't blame you man, Raymond was a good guy, but you know how he'd want us to be living life right now. That shit was two years ago bro stop stressing it."

Kincaid saw the turn to the PX and pulled in, driving around for a few moments before finding an adequate spot. He sighed as he began to pull the vehicle in to park. "I'm fine, seriously. It's not like I'm hearing loud noises and hittin the deck. I'll be fine out there, _**we'll**_ be fine. You can count on me man."

Elton smiled as he pat Kincaid's shoulder. "Alright, that's that then."

The two sat there quiet for a moment, there was a time long ago where they couldn't even have this conversation. It was a pain that never left many of the Marines from Delta Company, they had lost more than a fellow tanker.

They had lost a brother, family.

But today wasn't a day for grieving there would be plenty of time for negativity in the coming months.

"Dude."

"Yeah?"

"Let's get fucking trashed."

"Bet."

* * *

 **1700 HOURS, SECOND TANK BATTALION BARRACKS**

Kincaid and Elton both grabbed a case of Samuel Adams and made their way to a large three-story brick building. To any casual onlooker this was a den of heathens, but to the Marines this was home.

Well something close to it.

The pair watched as Marines chased each other in various states of undress around railed catwalks while loud music blasted from the various rooms.

* * *

 **Second Tanks' Album of Awesome**

 **Track 2: Miley Cyrus "Party in The USA"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

As they made their way to the building they saw a familiar face waiting for them on the second story railing. Smoking a cigarette and wearing his usual bucket hat and sweats, he looked like an absolute bum. Of course, a bum he was most certainly not, though he liked people to think that of him. In truth, he was highly intelligent.

When he wanted to be.

His name was Darian Wilkes Jr. and like Jasper and Elton, he was a veteran and former Delta Marine. A hulking brute of a black man, he had carved his name in the sands of Afghanistan as Kincaid's old driver. Now that he was a loader his reputation and nickname, Rampage, hadn't changed one bit.

Kincaid rolled his eyes and smiled. "You ever gonna change out of that stupid shit?"

Wilkes laughed as he watched the two Marines climb up one of the stairways, as they made their way to the front door he countered Kincaid's joke with one of his own.

"You ever gonna stop watching that freaky Japanese anime shit?"

Kincaid knew the drill, it was another one of their "Roast offs". A contest of who could make the other look like a bigger fool, as he unlocked the door with one hand, he countered.

"You ever gonna get a car?" Wilkes laughed and did an elaborate spin as he tossed his cigarette off the balcony. "You ever gonna get as much ass I have?"

Elton had laughed at this response, as the three Marines made their way into the two person barracks room, Kincaid set his case into the fridge and hung up his blouse. "You ever gonna stop being so goddamn ugly?"

Elton gave a loud "Ooooh" before Wilkes chuckled. "You ever gonna stop getting your ass beat?!"

Within seconds Wilkes and Elton had dog-piled onto Kincaid and a three-person wrestling match had begun. Kincaid could scrap with the best of them, but against two well built African American males? He was at a loss.

This went on for a while until all three laughed, just another day in the barracks. Eventually, the beers were distributed and the three misfits made their way onto the catwalk, smoking all the while.

Elton took a long swig of his beer before turning to face Kincaid, "Hey, go ahead and text the rest of the guys. I have the gear list and shit in the room."

Not skipping a beat, Kincaid whipped his cell phone out of his cargo pocket and sent a mass text to everyone in the platoon.

 _Sure you're all tracking about the Camp Fuji shit show, gear list is in my room. Oh and by the way, BYOB. You fuckers aren't getting any of ours._

He finished the text with a heart emoji and snickered as he put his phone away. As he looked down the catwalk he noticed something that was a blight to his veteran eyes. A few rooms down, a short bulky Hispanic Marine stood there in front of his door in his service Alphas.

He looked absolutely lost.

Boot.

Kincaid downed his beer, and yelled at the PFC *****. "Hey! Throw some goddamn civvies on and get your ass over here!"

The young PFC quickly hurried into his room and slammed the door.

"Oooh get em."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he went to fetch another beer. "That's probably our driver. Woop dee fuckin doo."

Most new guys entering the fleet Marine force went through a long and arduous period of suffering before they could stand as equals with the more senior Marines. Unlike most other units however, Second Tank Battalion was different in that it treated its new joins with a bit more respect than other units.

A bit more, take it or leave it.

In moments the PFC had come back from his room to the shock of the three senior tankers, he actually dressed like a normal human being. Something a lot of "boots" didn't do when they came into the fleet.

As he walked up Wilkes came around with a freshly opened beer and offered it to him. "Welcome to the fleet, thanks for not acting like a fucking boot. The name's Wilkes, but on the tank you call me Rampage, ya dig?"

In moments the PFC had downed the beer and lit up a cigarette, he was already making waves with his new crew. The three senior Marines looked at each other with smiles. They had gotten lucky maybe this new guy wasn't such a boot after all. Before Kincaid and Elton could introduce themselves the PFC had already beaten them to it.

"I'm George, George Benitez. Before you go asking, yes I can speak fluent Spanish and yes I can drive a tank without nose diving into a ditch."

Definitely not a boot or at least, he certainly didn't act like one.

Had Benitez done this anywhere else he would've gotten a swift kick to the privates, but here in Charlie Company Second Tanks? Tankers stood together as a family. So instead of kicking his ass, the three senior tankers merely looked at each other and nodded in approval.

Elton took the lead this time and introduced himself. "I'm Corporal Parker Elton and no please don't fucking finish every sentence with 'Aye Corporal'. I'm your tank commander, over there is Lance Corporal Jasper Kincaid he's your gunner. Wilkes is obviously your loader if you haven't already guessed."

Benitez took the time to shake hands with each of his new crew members before Elton started up again. "You're lucky bro, you got put on the only veteran crew in this company. Just listen to us and you'll do fine, we're going to Japan next month just an FYI."

As he said this, Wilkes had gone inside and pulled out the entire case of beers they had been making trips to. "Might as well keep this shit out here."

As the Marines each lit up a cigarette and grabbed a beer Kincaid had a moment of enlightenment, glancing over towards Benitez.

"Yo, tradition demands you have a nickname when we're on the tank."

Each of the senior tankers nodded their heads in agreement, these were facts. Suddenly Elton came to a realization as he choked on a drag he had previously taken. He sputtered for a few moments as he tried to find his words.

"I got it! Let's call him Little John."

Benitez raised an eyebrow, he had been expecting something more stereotypical. "Why Little John?"

"Because you look like a fucking sidekick that's why."

Each of the senior tankers nodded and thus Benitez was christened Little John from that day on. Beer cans were clanked together as Wilkes rolled his eyes. "Welcome to our little piece of hell nigga."

Kincaid nodded in agreement. "Oh the adventures you'll have..."

As the night dragged on the rest of the platoon began to trickle over and gather with the newly formed crew. Introductions were quickly carried out, word was passed and things went right back to normal for a Friday evening.

A "Normal Friday evening."

Soon there was a whole platoon's worth of tankers running amok, beer cans were thrown, cigarettes were chain smoked and Benitez figured out that Kincaid was a nerd much like himself. The anime posters in his wall locker and various merchandise was a dead giveaway.

This was, of course, met with jeers and laughter. Family or not nerds were still nerds.

After several hours of debauchery the Marines finally began to drunkenly make their way back to their rooms, Kincaid said his goodbyes to Elton and the others before going back into his room and locking the door. Soon he was met with the familiar sound of Wilkes snoring on his own bunk.

As the sound vibrated throughout the room Kincaid rolled his eyes stripped down into his boxers and laid down on his bed. He lay there for a few moments before checking his watch.

 _Might as well call dad and give him the bad news._

He groaned as he felt around his nightstand, once he finally found his phone he dialed in a series of numbers. After a few moments and some ringing, Kincaid's father, Jackson, picked up. "Hey pops, looks like the Corps is throwing the bullshit switch again, we gotta go train with the Japs over at Camp Fuji."

"You're shitting me, the hell tanks gonna do over there?"

"Beats the hell out of me dad."

Jackson laughed through the phone as he heard the news. Usually there were only a few reasons why his son would call; to complain, to let him know he was going on leave, or to just check in with him.

This time, as usual, it was to complain.

"Well that's different, I didn't think tanks trained there."

"They don't, but I guess you would know better than I wouldn't you?"

Jackson was a diplomatic security agent, but more than that he was a twenty year Marine veteran. He had fought in the Gulf War, Somalia, and many other hell holes. As a result of him climbing the ranks he knew things and knew people. Though his new job wasn't as glorious as his old one he still concealed carried and was around very important individuals.

The pay wasn't too bad either, something not lost on Kincaid when he made up his mind to work alongside his father after college. He just had to get through his enlistment first, something this training op was standing in the way of.

"Well, just another day of the same old. ISIS or not son, the world is becoming a powder keg. Big powers are making their moves and the stage is set. It's only a matter of time before something pops off. I'm sure the Japanese just want to know we have their back, even if they do want our bases out of there. Anyways, just keep your head on a swivel. Hearing me?"

Kincaid sighed as he rubbed his forehead. "Yeah, I hear ya Gunny."

Jackson laughed, "I'm not in the Corps anymore son, either way, make sure you call your sister and let her know you won't be coming home next month. I'd hate to see her drive all the way from Mississippi only to find out her brother isn't home."

With that, father and son said their goodbyes and hung up. Kincaid stared at the ceiling for a few moments before letting out a sigh and drifting off to sleep.

Of course, that didn't last long before _**it**_ came back to visit him. A "Gentle" reminder of his past.

 _"Fuck Four is hit! Repeat Four is hit!"_

 _"All tanks this is Tiger Four Lima, my actual is knocked out and my gunner is dead! Multiple contacts from our direct rear! I've got eyes on small arms and RPGs! We're sitting ducks out here, we've lost track!"_

 _"Hang in there Four, we're turning around!"_

 _"Christ Wilkes! Keep your fucking head down! I'm bringing the gun right! Coax on the way!"_

Kincaid violently woke up, sweat clinging to his body as his eyes darted around the room. He sat there breathing hard for a few moments a tear running down his face as he began to calm down.

Another night terror, another flashback.

He slowly began to lay down, burying his face into his hands all the while.

"I was supposed to be done with this shit."

* * *

 **JUNE 10TH, 0800 HOURS, PORT OF SAN DIEGO  
**

From atop his tank Kincaid shifted uncomfortably over the gun mantle and lowered his boonie cover over his eyes. Being at port always meant work when on the Corps' time table. Kincaid looked around the dock at the four tan tanks and their M88 recovery vehicle. They were arranged in a line formation with their gun tubes max depressed over the rear and cinched down with cables.

The platoon had been there for a few hours now and as time had gone on other Marines from various other units began to trickle in as well. The only ones who knew when their "ride" would be there were the Navy personnel monitoring radios. With all this time available many Marines including Kincaid had tried to squeeze what precious little sleep they could in. They'd have a lot of work ahead, might as well enjoy the peace while they could.

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he watched Aldritch and his platoon Sergeant Johnson laugh from in front of the Lieutenant's tank. Whatever the joke was, it couldn't have been _**that**_ funny. Higher ups always found humor in the most mundane of things, their underlings merely nodding their heads like the good subordinates they were.

Dismissing the thought from his mind, Kincaid lit a cigarette and powered up his phone in hopes he had a show long enough to pass the time. He had only been a few minutes into an episode before Benitez took up a seat next to him, the burly Hispanic's grinning face slowly rising up from the front of the turret's edge.

"Whats up man?"

Benitez shrugged. "Can't sleep man...the hell are you watching?"

"Honestly I have no idea, I just typed best anime harems of two thousand fifteen into the search bar and just downloaded some random crap."

"Harems bro? Really? Jesus how do you watch that shit, like the guy never fucks any of the girls at all. They're practically begging for it too!"

"Man that's not all I watch."

"Oh really? Enlighten me, I brought fucking Bakemonogatari _**and**_ Big O."

Kincaid shook his head as he began to school his driver. "My man, my man. You do realize that ole boy in Monogatari likes little girls right? Now Big O I'll let slide because that's big mother fucking O, a goddamn classic. What you need to get on is Hellsing and Jormungand."

"Dude Araragi does not like little girls."

"Oh he doesn't?"

"Hell to the fuck no."

Kincaid let out a cloud of smoke. "Yeah okay, give it some time. As for my harems? You do realize it'd be full blown hentai if they fucked the girls right? I mean don't get me wrong, I'd die before I ever turned a hot ass fox girl down. But that's just how the genre goes."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

Benitez raised an eyebrow. "So...what's so bad about them becoming hentai?"

"Dude, I've seen hentai that's worse than some of Wilkes's porn collection. Believe me you don't want to go down that road. It's just fucking weird."

"Well I mean..."

"Dude, seriously?!"

Before Benitez could defend himself a groan came from behind. "Yo if you two nerds don't shut the hell up, you can go bonkers all you want when we get to Japan."

Elton had been sleeping in between the tank commander's and loader's hatch his cupola offering a fair degree of shade from the sun. Meanwhile, snoring began to rumble forth from the bowels of the tank. Wilkes had hit the comfortable stage of his sleep cycle, the stage where his snoring left everyone else everything but comfortable.

Before Kincaid could think of something slick to respond with a thought crossed his mind. "Shit man, funny how after years of my family living overseas I don't get to go to visit Japan until my ass is in fucking tanks."

Benitez raised and eyebrow as he lit a cigarette of his own. "No shit? Jesus _amigo_ , ain't your mom like in Singapore and your dad off in goddamn Sudan?"

"Nah man, mom's in goddamn..." Kincaid paused as his eyes went wide. With all the moving his mom did, he had completely forgotten for a moment. Not that he faulted himself he was too busy being self absorbed in Marine Corps drama to keep tabs on everything else. Kincaid sighed before finishing his response. "I'll get back to you on that, all I know is that it's somewhere in southeast Asia. But yeah pops is off in Sudan."

"Christ." Benitez shook his head. "Jamaica, Africa, Singapore right? I mean, before you enlisted."

"Yep, and visited plenty others."

"You guys sure as hell get around."

It was true, a divorce between two parents working for the government could do that for you. While his mother worked for the state department his father had been acting Detachment Commander for each embassy Kincaid's mother went to. This meant Kincaid and his younger sister Janice had long lived a life abroad full of adventure and luxury.

Of course, all good things eventually came to an end. It was surprising enough that Kincaid's parents had made it far enough to even have another child as well as keep the facade of everything being fine between them. Once the family hit Singapore, enough was enough.

Eventually a split began to form and became a full on tear. The crescendo of it all being a sixteen year old Kincaid waking up to his mother sobbing in their kitchen, his father off in Iraq working for Black Water after his recent retirement from the Marine Corps. From that day on nothing would ever be the same for the Kincaid family.

Faced with a difficult decision as the oldest of the two siblings Kincaid had to choose. Go back to the states with his father or continue to live abroad with his mother. Regardless of what decision he made his sister would come with him, his parents having long agreed that the siblings would never experience the pain of growing up separately.

So Kincaid made his choice, one that to this day he believed in his heart of hearts to be the right one. What followed after that was a long journey of maturing with lessons both good and bad, the climax being where Kincaid was today.

A United States Marine a dirty tanker no less.

Meanwhile, Kincaid's mother continued to work abroad at embassies, her last post having been the Hague Netherlands before she went off to god knew where.

The Netherlands had been a fun trip though.

The good news was that Kincaid's parents had long reconciled their differences for the sake of the children and stayed on friendly terms. That been said, the Kincaid siblings had to live with the arduous process of seeing their mother once a year. It was a fact of life they had long gotten used to and one the broken family had actually gotten stronger for.

Everyone was in a good place after all, well, mostly.

Eventually Benitez clambered down the front of the tank and into his driver's station leaving Kincaid quite literally alone to his own devices. Sighing to himself he lit another cigarette and looked for something on his phone to mellow him out.

After what felt like a lifetime of searching for the right song, Kincaid finally found one that suited the unfortunate situation he was in.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 3: Nirvana "Come As You Are"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _"Come as you are, as you were, as I want you to be. As a friend, as a friend, as an old enemy."_

Rubbing his thick mustache, he let out a good yawn and took his glasses off. Between the sounds of the ocean waves and the music, sleep soon caught up to the gunner.

A temporary moment of relief at best, even over his music he could hear the distant sound of a foghorn going off. A quick glance under his boonie cover confirmed the rest.

A distant grey rectangle had began to take shape over the horizon, a U.S. Navy ship.

Soon the sounds of shouting began to usher forth as Kincaid and the other Marines began to wake up and get their tanks prepped for loading.

The Wasp Class amphibious assault ship _USS Iwo Jima_ had arrived.

 _"Take your time, hurry up. The choice is yours, don't be late."_

* * *

 **Jargon/Acronyms**

DFT: Deployment For Training

EAS: End of Active Service, getting out of the Marines

PFC: Private First Class

Advon: Advanced Echelon. Essentially the guys who go ahead of the rest of the unit and prep things for them.

MFLC: Military and Family Life Consultant. Essentially a counselor.


	4. In the Land of the Rising Sun

**Chapter 2: In the Land of the Rising Sun**

 _"Lying offshore, ready to act, the presence of ships and Marines sometimes means much more than just having air power or ship's fire, when it comes to deterring a crisis. And the ships and Marines may not have to do anything but lie offshore. It is hard to lie offshore with a C-141 or C-130 full of airborne troops."_

Gen. Colin Powell, U.S. Army Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff During Operation Desert Storm.

 **0900 HOURS JUNE 17TH, IWO JIMA** _ **,**_ **COAST OF JAPAN**

Kincaid and the other tankers looked out over the ocean towards Japan, the view from the flight deck provided an amazing view. To say it had been a long unenjoyable voyage was an understatement, Kincaid hated being on ship even if it was his first time. Between various duties, the constant motion of the waves and occasionally having to go below to make sure the tanks weren't rusting.

It was hardly a pirate's life for him.

Even with the clear sky, cool ocean breeze and the sun shining brightly Kincaid wasn't a happy man at the moment. The constant bobbing back and forth had began to make him slightly dizzy.

Elton suddenly wrapped his arms around both Kincaid and Benitez's shoulders before starting in a mock Japanese accent.

"Oh Kincaid and Benitez-kun! We've waited so long for you, love you long time."

Elton and Wilkes burst into a laughing fit, several hollers from the rest of the platoon followed not long after.

Kincaid removed Elton's arm with a scowl on his face before defending himself. "Man If you don't shut the fuck up, you were all about coming here too so don't gimme that shit." The gunner promptly folded his arms. "Look I just want to get this shit done, head back and get the hell out!"

Wilkes got between the three, ever the goon he was, he attempted to make light of the situation. "Yo, I don't know about yall? But I'm tryin to see what the nightlife is like, I hear they know how to get down in Tokyo."

He snickered as he started to point his index finger into a hole he made with his other hand. "Trying to get me some you know?"

Elton rolled his eyes. "Yeah right like we'll get the chance."

"A nigga can dream can't he?"

Voices of agreement spread throughout the platoon most Marines knew that being stationed in Japan was either a death sentence or a very fun time depending on how bad the libo restrictions were.

The four tankers went serious on that note. The bullshit training was one thing, but a number of liberty plans were a much more serious priority. Liberty in a new land? They could hardly wait.

Benitez and Kincaid began to go back and forth in murmurs talking about all the anime and cosplay events they could potentially attend. Their spirits high the two hi-fived and looked back out over the ocean.

Suddenly a large voice boomed over the loud speakers.

" _All non essential personnel are to report to their sections for briefing on ship to shore operations at once._ "

As the various Marines on the flight deck ran to the ladder wells the voice continued. " _All flight personnel begin prepping rotary assets for immediate departure_."

On that note, Kincaid's platoon rushed to their rooms to don their CVC suits, grab their gear and receive the briefing from Aldritch. Upon receiving the information they made their way to the well deck there was work to be done.

The well deck reeked of machinery mixed with saltwater, chains rattled overhead making the scene look not unlike that out of a medieval dungeon. Instead of monsters born of flesh and blood, there lay monsters of a much different breed.

Arranged in a box formation, the four tan M1A1 Abrams tanks and the M88 sat prepped and ready to move out. Arranged on each tank's bore evacuator was a name affectionately stenciled on it during the voyage over. _Cry Sum Moar_ , _Boss Hoss_ , _Southern Belle_ , and finally _Here We Go Again_. The M88, of course, bore a name of its own.

 _Big Sally._

A tank's name was its soul given to it by a crew who had trained and worked together on it through all strifes and conquests. In this situation the tankers had just gotten bored with all the time they had and had simply put names on the tanks. They knew that when First Tanks eventually got their hands on the vehicles they'd probably take the names off or replace them with names of their own.

As the various crews scrambled aboard their tanks snorkels and various other devices were installed in order to prevent water from entering sensitive openings. It was a time-draining process, but the crews knew the drill.

As the crew of _Here We Go Again_ prepped their beast they could hear the sound of lifts ferrying transport helicopters up to the flight deck.

Rotors began to spin and in moments the sounds of various transport and attack helicopters taking off could be heard as they headed to the airbase on Iwakuni.

As for the rest of the "Ground pounders", they had to wait for the AAV's ***** and LCAC's to start up before they could hit the shore. Eventually, infantry began to pile onto the well deck and into the AAV's. With the sound of thunder, the AAV's fired up their diesel engines and took off into the water, watching this humorous scene one of the other tankers in the platoon began to chime in. It was Corporal Parker, the other tank commander in Kincaid's section.

The well toned Georgia boy scoffed as he eyed the proceedings, running a hand across his slicked back medium fade. "Man that shit just ain't natural gaddamn fuckin tracked vehicle how the hell does anyone feel safe in the water riding in that?"

It was true, most Marines dreaded the AAV. From a common sense standpoint it was a deathtrap, but somehow it _**did**_ float. Though long due for a replacement the Corps was fickle in its ways and held onto its money. "If it worked then it'll work now" was usually the response to any naysayers.

Then again several other budget changes were being made in regards to standard infantry armament and even other combat vehicles. Most of it was wishful thinking at best though, the Corps was notorious for never being able to make its mind up about anything.

Eventually, a loud rumbling could be heard as the LCACs began to start. It was time for the "Four Horsemen" to be loaded up and sent to shore, a time expending process to say the least. An LCAC could only hold one tank at a time and there were only two LCACs.

This was the only way to get the vehicles to the mainland however. Offloading U.S. tanks and armored vehicles at the port of Tokyo would've been a nightmare both there and in the tight winding Japanese streets. Such a process was also strictly forbidden after an incident with a bridge layer years ago that resulted in the deaths of two civilians.

When it was time for _Here We Go Again_ to begin her voyage from ship to shore, her crew donned their comm helmets making sure internal radio checks were clear before they manning their stations.

Benitez climbed into his drivers hole adjusting his seat as he did so, not long after Elton's voice came over comm. "Little John I swear to Christ man if you drown us I'm killing you in the afterlife several times over."

Adding to the jokes Kincaid chimed in. "Yeah bro no sweat or anything, but seriously try not to drive into the water, just follow the ground guide's instructions and we'll be right as rain."

Finally, it was Wilke's turn to add to the pressure, yelling into his helmet's boom mic. "Amphibious!"

Benitez assured each that he would most certainly not "Take the tank to Davey Jone's locker" before firing up the tank's engine. The powerful jet turbine engine roared to life as the beast rose from its slumber. In moments two ground guides from the LCAC went to the front and rear of the tank coordinating it onto the LCAC's ramp and into its hold.

As this was done another crewmen came to the tank and chained it down to the deck.

Like anything in the Corps, the trip had felt like a lifetime. Upon reaching the shore; the LCAC's ramp was lowered, the chains dismounted, and _Here We Go Again_ hit the port's dock to join the rest of the platoon. Once cohesion was established the four tanks and recovery vehicle gunned their engines towards mainside and the waiting motor pool.

* * *

 **1800 HOURS, MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP FUJI**

The trip to mainside had been a fun one, plenty of locals and stationed personnel were awed by the sight of four massive armored vehicles driving past. It had been a long time since Abrams tanks had gotten their tracks dirty on Japanese soil after all and many locals had never seen one before either.

Arriving at the destination however, wasn't so fun.

After ground guiding the tanks to the motor pool and fueling them the crews had to begin the long arduous process of after operations.

The tracks were inspected for wear, gear was unloaded, fluid levels were checked and finally tarps were laid out over the tanks before the crews could get sent to their new living quarters.

This was one of the many woes of operating tracked vehicles. There was never an end to maintenance. To be fair, after the crews finished their work they had gotten lucky and were actually given barracks to stay in. The respite was brief however as the crews soon had to throw on their utility uniforms and report to the theater for briefing on the coming event. There was information to be passed.

As the Marines crowded into plastic chairs the room suddenly turned into a giant convention center of gossip. Marines chatted about things "A guy who told a guy" told them and unfounded rumors began to settle among the men.

The cacophony of noise was ended abruptly when the order of attention on deck was given. All the Marines abruptly rose out of their chairs at attention. A sea of shaved heads and military fades moving up as one, as a rusty old Lieutenant Colonel gave the brief. An attempt to boost morale was carried out, the training plan set out, and finally the length of time they'd be there was given.

He then went on to explain the history of the base and why they were there. How the Japanese were their allies and how America would, "Drop dead before it let its allies hang out dry". This was true after all, Marines had cemented their place in history during World War Two, island hopping all the way to this very island. Fighting all the while.

They would then turn around and help rebuild the infrastructure of the very enemy who had attacked them in the first place. Now the scars of the past had long since healed and in their place were two old friends.

Somewhat, it was a well known fact that there were plenty of Japanese who despised the nearby U.S. bases and their occupants. Even after all the training operations and relief efforts carried out by both powers, some wounds just never healed.

Long story short, all the Marines wanted to know was how long they'd be there for.

Three agonizing months the kind of time that made one's head spin.

Upon being dismissed, Aldritch gathered his platoon together and informed them of the plan regarding the next few days. PMCS*, gear accountability, the usual. It wasn't until the words "Visit", "Japanese" and "Officers" were uttered that the men groaned before being sent to go about their evenings.

* * *

 **1900 HOURS, MESSHALL, CAMP FUJI**

"Jesus christ man, right out of the frying pan and into the fire. Now we get to give some boot ass officers a dog and pony. You know that shit's gonna be gayer than Drake's lyrics."

Elton finished his statement as he slammed his fork into the meat brick that had been served to them.

The four tankers laughed before Kincaid chimed in. "Yeah man they're gonna be all over the shit like kids at a jungle gym."

He proceeded to bulge his eyes out and looked as though he was examining an imaginary tank.

Benitez sat back, listening in on the three war dogs continue their back and forth ramble about how crappy things were going to become. Setting down his fork he finally asked the question that had been on his mind. "So uh, what exactly is a dog and pony?"

Kincaid gulped down his stale rice before starting to school the newest tanker, using his spoon not unlike a teacher giving a lecture. "A dog and pony my boy, is basically letting a bunch of people climb aboard the tank and guffaw at it while we look all professional and tell them what it does."

Kincaid pointed to his thick mustache as he continued. "There is no way in hell I'm shaving this either."

The four could agree on that, the whole point of being in training meant you could grow out a mustache during time spent "In the field". To a service member, a mustache was a sign of daring and a bold take no shit attitude. That been said, the four tankers had all grown theirs out. The result was a crew of three dark and one light-skinned group of Marines who looked like cavemen. In fact, the only thing that really gave them away as Marines at all were the uniforms and military regulation haircuts.

Fine by them though tankers were a rough bunch, take it or leave it was their mentality and nobody wanted to leave tanks behind. They were too valuable for that.

Finishing their food and leaving the four spent the rest of the evening at the smoking area swapping jokes and trying to get what relax time they could. When the night began to get late they each split off into groups of two and into their respective rooms. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

 **0800 HOURS JUNE 19TH, GINZA JAPAN**

Lieutenant Itami Youji looked over at himself in the mirror once more before sighing. His sleep deprived eyes looking over the intricate details of his uniform over and over.

Running his hand through his messy brown hair, he made his way into the living room. He had a long day ahead of him.

Marines, it just had to be Marines. Itami had no qualms against them in fact, he had always heard nothing but interesting tales of them from his fellows in the JSDF.

Many had worked with U.S Marines and many gave different descriptions of them and their actions, but one thing remained constant. Professional misfits, some of the most interesting men and women his fellow self-defense force members had ever worked with.

Itami didn't want to have anything to do with them however and he had his own reasons for this.

The simple fact was, he was lazy, and with a new comic convention on the way he wanted to finish all of his current manga before going off to start getting new ones. His current exhaustion had been a result of yet another up all night binge reading session.

Such was the life of an otaku, especially one in the defense force. Itami always was one of the more odd ones. A fact not lost on his superiors and fellows.

The motto he lived by was that his job was nothing more than a means to continue his hobby. This didn't mean he was a bad soldier. In fact, he had gone through many special training schools during his time.

That didn't mean he wasn't any less lazy however.

To make matters worse there was talk he might even be part of the joint training exercises being conducted in the following months. To miss out on reading was one thing, but to miss out on a convention? One that just so happened to be upcoming?

Not on his watch.

To rectify this he had to jump through a series of hoops to make up lies good enough to get him out of it. In the end his endeavors paid off, but there was a catch. He had to go put on a good face and meet the Marines.

Itami straightened his uniform once more before grabbing his soft cover and making his way out of his apartment and onto the warm street. Outside a white van sat parked on the opposite side of the street.

They had been waiting for him.

As Itami slid the door open he noticed the familiar faces of some of his fellow Japanese soldiers. Some were asleep, but most sat looking out the windows with stern faces. One had caught his eye however, a chestnut brown haired woman sat up front in the passenger seat her face brimming with excitement. She was a small thing, jittery too. Her movements were like that of a squirrel with a nut.

Itami wouldn't argue she was cute. Upon looking at her rank he noticed she was a Sergeant First Class and had he not seen that he might've confused her for a young recruit.

As she saw Itami take his seat she looked back at him, she began to ramble off, her excitement barely contained.

"Sir, can you believe this? Marines! Actual U.S. Marines!", she held up a photo as she squeaked. On it was a picture of a tank firing its main cannon at a range exercise. It had to be American, it certainly didn't look like any tank the JSDF operated.

"One of my friends got to visit them in the U.S. during a military show, these guys are top notch! They charge right into the action, up close and violent, the way its meant to be done!"

She was clearly a younger soldier, eager to go and fight an enemy that would probably never be fought. It was all well and good, but Itami knew better. Exercises were a common thing, but everyone in the JSDF knew it'd be a while before that training would have to be put to use.

No one was complaining however, that was certain.

Itami rubbed his temple and looked out the window with a sigh, it was going to be a long drive to Fuji. Or rather it was supposed to be, Itami's nap quickly came to an end upon arriving at the main gate.

* * *

 **1100 HOURS CAMP FUJI**

From the moment they entered the main gate, there was a complete change of atmosphere. Everywhere Itami looked he saw men that resembled bull dogs. They walked with a mean stride and their eight-point covers hid their faces. It was no wonder they were called Devil Dogs.

It also didn't help that the young female soldier had her face pressing against the glass like a child at a zoo. She looked like she wanted to break the glass and start training with the Marines.

The other JSDF soldiers kept their stoic looks however, they wanted to put on a good face. Just because they weren't an official standing military didn't mean they were without bearing. They still had a duty to protect the people of Japan and its interests in the region.

As the van rounded a few corners one of the Marine officers who had met the Japanese at the gate finally began to speak.

"Well, first stop is the motor pool. Most of our heavy equipment and personnel are there, our Marines highly proficient in their jobs and will be more than happy to show you around the equipment we operate."

 **XXXXXXX**

Kincaid lit a cigarette and adjusted his woodland MARPAT boonie cover once more as he tried to get comfortable. Much like the rest of his crew, even with the tan CVC suit he still had the look of a ruffian.

Wilkes had donned a black beanie making sure it sat off his head just enough to make him look like a goofball. With his loosely tied boots he looked absolutely comical, if not in an intimidating kind of way.

Next was Benitez, being the shortest of the crew of giants he had chosen to wear his boonie cover as well. His cover drooped down over his head in such a way he resembled the farmers back in his home country, the Dominican Republic.

Finally there was Elton, ever the classy man he was he had donned his tan aviators and went for a Kanye West look.

* * *

 **Benitez's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 3: Raulin Rodriguez "Medicinia de Amor"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

As Kincaid looked over the assorted weapons on the front slope of the tank a Hispanic voice slowly grew louder and louder from out of nowhere. Benitez had jacked the portable speaker the crew often toted around and was playing his music from "The old country".

Finally having had enough Kincaid finally yelled over the music. "Dude, turn that burrito bullshit off!"

Benitez obviously didn't hear him as he continued to dance around singing along to the song.

It took Kincaid turning the speaker off to stop the noise that was troubling him so. As for Benitez, it took him a few seconds to realize the music had stopped at all. During this period of time he had continued dancing and singing to music that wasn't there.

"Hey man, that shits no _bueno_!"

Kincaid shook his and rolled his eyes before yelling. "Elton, what kind of tank is **_this_**?"

"It's an American tank"

"Right you are! Benitez, you want to listen to **_that_** crap? Go join a Hispanic tank."

"Seriously? You're gonna quote fucking Fury? Nigga who the real boot?"

Kincaid made a fist and scrunched his face up into a mock look of disdain. "Dude I'm about to knock the fucking Suavemente right the fuck out of you."

The four Marines laughed while each started trying to copy the dance Benitez had been doing before. While the rest of the Marines around the motor pool stayed nervous or otherwise quiet in preparation of the visit, Kincaid's crew having done all they could do, began to take it easy and relax.

Suddenly Wilkes looked as though he had just had an epiphany. "Yo my dudes peep this, who actually remembered those gay ass online classes?"

The rest of the crew looked at each other as if expecting someone to confess. The sad fact was, none of them had. Even though they had remembered some basics of proper greetings and how to conduct themselves, the language was still lost to them. To be fair though, a few months was certainly not long enough to even get a basic grasp of any complex language.

As Kincaid fetched another cigarette out of his pocket and lit it he began to put the crew's fears to rest. "Well I mean its not like they're gonna look at our tank, there's so many others plus they'll probably just go look at the XO's." He then grabbed a Monster energy drink from off the front slope of the tank and popped the top off.

With a cigarette and energy drink, Kincaid was in his element and certainly wasn't going to be stressed out over some visitors or the the bullshit the senior Marines would try to pull. Whenever there was some sort of inspection or show, the higher ups would always start freaking out and making things stressful.

As the crew went back to jamming to music and chain smoking like the fiends they were, a white van pulled into the motor pool. The four Marines looked at the van and scrambled around behind their tank, taking the music with them.

The JSDF officials had arrived.

* * *

 **Jargon/Acronyms etc**

 **PMCS: Preventative Maintenance Checks and Services. You do this all the fucking time to make sure your shit doesn't break when it's time to go take it out for a joy ride.**

 **AAV: Amphibious Armored Vehicle**

 **M88: Recovery vehicle**

 **CVC: Combat Vehicle Crewman, flame retardant suit most tankers wear. FROGs replace them when on deployment.**


	5. Calm Before The Storm

**Chapter 3: Calm Before the Storm**

" _The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps._ "

Eleanor Roosevelt First Lady of the United States, 1945.

 **JUNE 19TH, 1400 HOURS, MOTOR POOL, CAMP FUJI**

Itami stepped out of the van and into the humid air of the motor pool. As the rest of his fellow soldiers and the Marine officer escorts exited, he took a look around the motor pool.

It was if all eyes had fallen upon him and the rest of the van's former occupants; everywhere he looked, he saw U.S. Marines of varying racial backgrounds. Truly a mixed bunch, if he ever saw one.

Meanwhile, the female Sergeant that had accompanied them looked ready to take off and see all the neat "toys".

"Gentlemen, welcome to the motor pool. We have various stations set up around the equipment."

The voice had came from one of the Marine officers that had driven them there, with a look of enthusiasm on his face he continued. "Everything you see here is the latest in what we utilize during our operations at home and abroad, and a lot of it will also be utilized during the training exercises we have upcoming with your personnel".

Itami looked around at the various armored vehicles and placed weapon systems. He had always heard the Marines got used to hand-me-downs from the Army, but if these were the hand-me-downs, he shuddered at what the Army was utilizing.

Either way, Itami just wanted to be done here so he could go back to the mainland and continue with his readings. Tomorrow was a big day, with the convention coming up. He tried to stay at the back of the group as they began to split up and go off to the various stations.

"Sir, we should go check out the tanks!" It was the female Sergeant, almost excited beyond words. Itami wanted to protest, but she had already begun dragging him over to where the four tanks sat on display.

If Itami had felt uneasy around the other Marines he saw, that failed in comparison to the men who crewed these beasts. They were rugged and had the looks of men who just didn't care what kind of dangerous mission they were sent into.

Some of them snickered under muttered voices, some just stood there and stared at him, sizing him up, no doubt.

As the two approached the tanks another Marine officer walked up with his hand outstretched, with a warm smile he extended a hand out and greeted them in rather broken Japanese.

"Hello, am I Lieutenant Aldritch, XO of Tanks Second Battalion Company Charlie Headquarters Platoon."

It took all the bearing Itami had in his core to stop himself from laughing, even the female Sergeant looked about ready to bust out laughing.

Aldritch looked like a generally nice guy, certainly younger than Itami though. Unlike his subordinates, he looked relatively clean and upbeat, most of his hair concealed under the woodland eight-point cover he wore on his head.

Not wanting to make the poor man struggle any further, Itami extended his arm out and said in perfect English. "I am Lieutenant Itami Youji and this is..."

The female sergeant promptly stood at attention. "Sergeant First Class Shino Kuribiyashi!"

Itami sighed before finishing his previous statement. "On behalf of the Japanese Self Defense Force, its an honor to meet you, Lieutenant Aldritch."

The look on Aldritch's face was nothing short of embarrassed and several of the other tankers who had heard the exchange snickered in the back. The noises quickly stopped when Aldritch turned around, glaring at them. Aldritch proceeded to compose himself before continuing his warm smile.

"Well, you certainly surprised me. I had taken those classes wanting to make things smooth between your men and mine, but it, uh, seems like you beat me to it."

Sergeant Kuribiyashi decided now was her chance to take the center stage. "So just four tanks? I thought there'd be more."

She looked at each of the rugged war machines, taking special note of the names on each gun tube. Aldritch looked back at his platoon before beginning his lesson. "Well, typically, there are. In this case however, most of our unit back home is already tasked with different training missions. The rest of our company, in particular, is training in Bulgaria"

Now it was time for his favorite part: talking about the tank. "As you can see we operate the M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank. Our tanks armed with a 120mm smoothbore main gun, two M240G 7.62 machine guns, and a commander's remotely controlled M48 .50 caliber machine gun."

Aldritch began to smile, pointing to the various weapon systems and features on the tanks. "With a top speed of 50kph and a new upgraded fire control system courtesy of the Army, we can fire on the move whilst maintaining battle tempo."

He then began to get into the breakup of how tanks operate, the two Japanese officials merely nodding all the while. "Typically there's about five companies in a battalion of tanks, with each company having three platoons and a headquarters section of tanks."

As the trio continued past some of the tanks and their crews, Itami noticed one group of Marines who had stood out from the others.

They were almost all entirely nonwhite, with only one being slightly light skinned, the glasses on his face making him unique from the others. They all looked pretty engrossed in talking among themselves at their tank. Every so often they'd start busting out laughing, smoking pouring from their mouths.

Aldritch seeing this, started walking them over to that very same tank talking all the while. "Each platoon has four tanks in it with both pairs of four broken into sections. Alpha and Bravo section, respectively. The Marine Corps only has two active duty tank battalions, First Tanks located in California and our battalion, Second Tanks, hailing from North Carolina "

The lieutenant continued talking about the composition of a tank unit until the three were almost right up at the last tank.

 **XXXXXXX**

The truth was, Kincaid knew full well this whole time that the two JSDF officials and the XO were coming towards his crew's tank. He knew the XO had seen them totally not paying attention and the crew was about to pay the price for it. Muttering under his breath, he warned the others.

"Look sharp, here come the boots."

The four tankers immediately tried to put on their best faces, cigarettes were put out and the music they had been playing promptly turned off.

As the two officials and the XO walked up Kincaid got a look at the two who had been up till now relatively quiet, no doubt listening to Aldritch drone on and on. The male had to be an officer, the rank on his collar of his blouse was shining even in the shade. He looked absolutely uncaring about being here, his short dark hair jutting out from under his cover. That was fine by Kincaid. The cute looking female on the other hand, not so much.

Kincaid had absolutely no idea what the hell rank she was, but judging by her quirky mannerisms and way she carried herself, she had to be at least enlisted. Either way, he and the rest of the crew stood at parade rest. It was Elton's job to do the talking.

Elton walked up to the two newcomers and Aldritch. "Good afternoon gentlemen and lady, my name is Corporal Parker Elton, I'm the tank commander aboard this M1A1 Abrams. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."

Textbook Elton, an enlisted Marine at heart with the face of a calm professional. What happened next was anything short of textbook or professional, however.

Just as Itami was about to shake Elton's hand, the female soldier had immediately ran up to the tank and started asking at least, a thousand questions. She picked up each individual machinegun and felt its weight, talking about how it wasn't too different from the ones the JSDF operated.

The crew merely stood there, their looks of confusion mirroring the officers'.

As the soldier continued rambling on, Aldritch was just about to put on a good face and take control of the situation before he was called over by some other nameless officer. Apologizing to the Japanese officer and promising a quick return, the lieutenant ran off leaving him to deal with the situation.

Itami rubbed his forehead before going to try to take care of the situation. Even now he could hear the tanker with the glasses trying to answer all of Kuribiyashi's questions.

"The max effective range is two thousand meters."

"That's a 120mm smoothbore main gun."

"No, it can't go underwater."

"Yes, we can fight at night."

Itami couldn't help but wonder if the Sergeant was insane that or just overly motivated. At one point she started climbing all over the tank like it was a jungle gym. Sighing, the lieutenant made his way over towards the tankers.

"I apologize for my subordinate here. Her hearts in the right place, but I think her mind might be a little too excited for the upcoming training."

Kincaid sighed and accepted the apology as best a junior enlisted could. The officer then introduced himself as a Lieutenant Itami Youji. Compared to his subordinate, he seemed a lot more laid back. Not the first pattern Kincaid had noticed in the military.

"Quite alright, sir. It's the same way in the Marine Corps believe me."

As Kincaid went to shake Itami's hand he noticed the officer had a strange look in his eyes, just behind them Benitez had been reading one of the manga he had brought with him during their trip. Itami promptly ran over and began grilling him with questions. "Is that Mei Con?! The latest edition!? Where did you get that?!"

Benitez pointed over at Kincaid and said in his usual low tone of voice. "Him, he's got more of it too sir."

It was then, that all three soldiers realized they were each into manga and were proud nerds as well. A common ground was shared and at that moment their ranks came off and discussions about anime and various other subjects of geekdom followed.

Meanwhile, Elton, Wilkes, and Shino watched this scene with incredulous looks.

Wilkes shook his head. "Fucking Nerds."

Shino nodded at this remark and grumbled. "Yeah right?" The sergeant paused before raising an eyebrow at the lance corporal. "You get to blow shit up often?"

"Yeah usually."

"Is it lots of fun?"

"Sure the hell is. I mean, I like using the 240 but that's just me." Wilkes folded his arms. "What, you don't get to shoot stuff often?"

Shino sighed. "No. We dont' train all that much. It sucks."

Wilkes chuckled. "Shit you wanna swap places? Training blows, we do it too damn much." Elton merely nodded in agreement to this. "Amen."

By the time Aldritch had returned both the tankers and the two JSDF officials were laughing and talking as if they were old friends. The East and West had come together in a big way and in such a small matter of time.

Eventually, Shino and Itami said their goodbyes and took their leave, not forgetting about the four goofy ass Marines they met. Shino had even been able to persuade Aldritch to take a photo of them all in front of the tank.

* * *

 **1100 HOURS, JULY 1ST GINZA DISTRICT, TOKYO JAPAN**

The following morning Itami woke up with a spring in his step. Today was the big day. The events of yesterday had been eventful and while he wished he could've met the tankers on different terms, he had his mind on bigger things. It was beautiful outside, the sun was warm and shining bright and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky.

Putting on an outfit befitting this special occasion, he grabbed his pack looping it over his shoulders and left his apartment. Closing and locking the door behind him he walked down the street and towards the metro station.

After a short trip and a rather embarrassing defeat on his cellphone game, Itami left the station and looked at the convention building. He had arrived finally after months of waiting and planning he had made it.

He quickened his pace and stepped inside, riding the escalator up his heart rate had skyrocketed. As he rode up the lack of sleep from the night prior had caught up to him.

The next thing he remembered was hitting a pillar in the middle of the room, dusting himself off he was helped up by a local before continuing on his trip.

As he rode up yet another escalator he became completely engrossed in the stands at the event.

 **XXXXXXX**

Meanwhile, in central Ginza a large building began to emerge, slowly shimmering as if from thin air it began to take the appearance of a large gatehouse.

Hollowed out at the center, it was massive. Endless black extending onward into an abyss. People began to look on in wonder, what was it? Some kind of theater prop?

Then they came, it had all happened so fast. Men clad in armor of old, spears drawn and swords raised. For a moment past and present stared at each other each side unsure of what to do.

They weren't alone, for with them strode beasts of olden tales; ogres, goblins and even dragons, time stood still.

Then at the sound of a war horn these new strangers attacked and with a rain of arrows, the killing began.

 **XXXXXXX**

Everything had been a blur for Itami. Once the killing started, all he could do was join everyone else in trying to get away from the screaming whilst trying to figure out what was going on.

Everywhere he looked he saw scenes of carnage, strange men dressed in medieval armor speared down people whilst giants beasts of various sizes joined them in the slaughter. Itami was sure he had seen dragons flying above the skyscrapers too.

All he knew was he had a job to do, help the civilians get to safety and try to coordinate with his superiors. As he made away from the carnage he saw a woman clearly distressed, her hands over his eyes.

"Listen, if you want to survive, you have to run now!" The woman looked up at Itami unsure of what to do before asking in a scared voice. "Who are you?"

Itami, unsure of what to say only said meekly, "I'm..."

Suddenly, his train of thought was cut off by the sounds of gunshots. A police officer had managed to shoot one of the riders off a low flying dragon. This victory was short-lived, however. As soon the rider got up and charged the officer and right into a choke hold courtesy of Itami. Seeing the rider's fallen blade, the lieutenant plunged the blade deep into the rider's neck. The threat neutralized, he checked on the others.

He then made his way towards the Imperial Palace, there were civilians to save.

* * *

 **1100 HOURS, AIRSPACE ABOVE JAPANESE WATERS, COAST OF TOKYO**

Two AV-8B harriers flew in close formation, having gotten proper clearance from JSDF air control they had the green light to perform maneuver training over Japanese waters.

Captain Willhelm loved his job; to fly in the skies was the pinnacle of human engineering. To fly freely and strike without fear of ground fire was just a plus to his job. He had flown missions in Afghan and Iraq, he was the guardian angel in the sky, a bringer of death and destruction from above to protect friendlies on the ground.

As he scanned the horizon he noticed pillars of smoke coming from Tokyo, making sure he wasn't seeing things he patched into his wing man.

"Raptor Two, this is Raptor One. Be advised, I'm seeing a lot of smoke coming from inland. You got eyes on this?"

"Raptor One. I read you, Lima Charlie, I'm seeing the same thing, want to take a look?"

"Well, I'm not sure. Are we even cleared to fly over the mainland? Might piss the Japanese off."

"Well, shit. Bet you they can't catch us. Besides, not like we're armed. Let's just take a quick look and bug out back over the water."

"Roger that, Raptor Two. You've got my good graces. Let's take a quick peek. Out."

The two jets quickly banked right, making their way towards the harbor and over the city. What they saw next was certainly not routine. As they did a fly by, they quickly scanned the ground with their nose cams. They could not believe what they were seeing.

On the ground was a scene of utter carnage. Waves of civilians, chased by what looked like medieval soldiers and ogres. Willhelm didn't have the time time to suspend his disbelief for long. Suddenly, a dark winged shape darted past the Captain's aircraft apparently the newcomers had brought air with them too.

But how?

Keeping his cool, Willhelm promptly engaged in evasive maneuvers. Harriers weren't designed for air superiority, but they weren't exactly sluggish either.

"Jesus Christ!, Raptor Two, watch our six! We've got flyers!" Willhelm blinked as he caught a glimpse of what was chasing them. The officer almost choked on his words as he patched into his wingmate once more. "They're fucking dragons!"

"What?!"

"Fucking dragons!"

The two Harriers began ducking and dodging as the creatures began to dart after them. Willhelm pushed his aircraft to its limits as he narrowly dodged yet another one of the strange creatures. Fortunately for the pilots it seemed as though Hollywood and fairy tales had over exaggerated the creatures' capabilities. They couldn't hope to keep up with the two jets.

They would've been easy pickings had the aircraft been armed. Banking back left the two jets flew back over the waters and away from the carnage. Breathing heavily Willhelm changed stations.

"Mother Goose, Mother Goose. This is Raptor One Be advised, we have a situation developing. Unknown enemy force sighted in inner city Tokyo. We're seeing civilian casualties on the ground. It's a fucking nightmare down there, over."

Some silence followed before he got the response he was expecting.

"Raptor One, this is Mother Goose. We're tracking the situation. You are ordered to RTB immediately and prep for armament, refuel, and re-tasking, over."

"Mother Goose, say again? Did you say we're arming up?"

"That's an affirm Raptor. You are prepping for combat operations." Willhelm fastened his air mask and pulled up on the stick, increasing altitude.

"Mother Goose, solid copy. We are RTB time now." The two fighter jets went full throttle towards Yokota.

Today was the start of a story that would be told again and again for years.

* * *

 **1300 HOURS, CAMP FUJI MOTOR POOL**

"Finally get some time off… and we're fucking sitting here."

"Again with the bitching. Shut up bro."

Kincaid and his crew found themselves once again sitting around the motor pool doing nothing. It had been a long and hot humid day with scant shade provided by the awnings. The Marines took this time to rest atop the tank turret and take it easy for a while, the XO had just left the motor pool in a rush. Probably just to get his ass chewed by some higher up.

The dull moment was immediately broken by the sounds of two Harrier jets screeching by. They looked like they were in a hurry, Kincaid dismissed the notion as them being showoffs and pulled his boonie cover back down over his eyes. Further noise could be heard, the sound of rotors. Lots of rotors. Kincaid tipped his boonie cover and looked up.

What he saw next wasn't so show-offish.

A flight of Osprey tilt-rotors, Huey Venom transports, and AH-1Z Viper attack choppers were flying in a combat formation. Like the Harriers they too looked to be in a hurry, to further make matters interesting the Vipers were armed and troops could be seen loaded for bear in the transport choppers.

Finally having had enough of the noise and questions spinning in his head, Kincaid yelled over at his platoon sergeant's tank.

"Hey, Sergeant Johnson! Is there some sort of training operation going down today?! I thought we weren't working with rotors until later on!" There was some silence followed by a groan.

"No, I have the training schedule! Why?"

"Well, there's a fuck ton of Vipers armed to the teeth! The transport birds look like they're ready to rock and roll too!"

"What the fuck?!"

Johnson finally looked up and saw what Kincaid saw and started scratching his head. Maybe it was a change in the schedule? No one sure as shit told him.

Their suspicions were promptly squashed when a loud siren went off and the sounds of trucks came screeching into the motor pool. They had ammo crates on them. A lot of ammo crates. Rushing out of the lead vehicle was an absolutely pale Aldritch.

"Hey! Load up these tanks and get ready to roll out! We've got a fucking situation!" The entire tank platoon woke up like a cat disturbed from its sleep and began fumbling off and around the tanks, Sergeant Johnson's eyes in particular going wide.

"Sir!? What's going on?!"

Aldritch glanced back at the Sergeant and the rest of the platoon, his voice beginning to stutter. "F-fucking Tokyo is under attack, we gotta get these tanks prepped to SP now."

All of the Marines stopped and looked at their platoon commander, Johnson voicing their concerns.

"Sir? Under attack? By who?!"

"I don't fucking know, Sergeant! Just get these tanks fucking prepped! I'll brief you all on the drive over. We're meeting up with a convoy and pushing our way to Japan."

One of the M88 crewmen ran over with a look of confusion on his face. "What about us?"

"Wait here for the rest of convoy. We'll regroup in the city. Go find Sergeant Muldoon and let him know what's going on.

"Rah."

There was no small amount of disappointment for not going along.

Main gun rounds were loaded, belts of coax fed into hungry turret mounted machine guns, and personal firearms were given magazines with ample ammunition.

Within minutes the four tanks were loaded up, frequencies loaded for stations that weren't on the training tables, comm checks carried out and tanks fired up and en route to the city. The first couple minutes were quiet as Kincaid looked down at the turret floor, listening to the sound of tracks grinding and propelling the tank forward.

He was no stranger to combat, but to have it Japan was like something out of a bad movie.

After the platoon finished making various twists and turns through and off base they followed behind another adhoc convoy in making their way towards Tokyo. In short order Aldritch came over the comms.

"All Horsemen tanks, this is Horsemen One. I'm sure you're wanting to know what the hell is going on. Well, you wouldn't believe me if I told you, but here it is. As of two hours ago, there was an attack carried out by an unknown enemy force in the Ginza district."

He paused before trying to find the words to best describe where the enemy came from. "Point of origin, a gate. Enemy size, battalion level."

Everyone's blood froze as they heard their platoon commander's last transmission, quickly coming back to reality as their platoon sergeant immediately voiced their confusion.

"One, this is Two, say again. A gate? What do you mean, a gate?"

"It was a goddamn portal, Two. A fucking portal opened up in the middle of Ginza and all sorts of bullshit started spewing out of it. That's all they told me. Currently, we have no idea who the enemy is are or what they're after. What we do know is that we have an obligation to protect not only our allies, but also our embassy located in Tokyo. As such we're heading forward now and avoiding all the political back and forth bullshit. Once we secure the embassy, we are to break off and support search and destroy operations."

All of the tankers remained quiet. A portal to another world, the stuff of science fiction. Only today it wasn't science fiction and they were very much off to go fight whoever or whatever stuck its face out of it. Not everyone was so taken aback however, Johnson once again seizing the initiative as an NCO of Marines.

Portal or not, there was still an enemy to be killed, and the Marines would be sure to kill them to the last if that's what it took.

"One, this is Two. What exactly are we going up against here? Tanks, light armor what?"

All of the rest of the platoon remained quiet as they awaited Aldritch's response, the sounds of tracks and hydraulics whining being the only things heard. This was it, the moment of truth. Would they be clashing steel against armored vehicles? A tankers true test of mettle? Or would they be fighting infantry armed to the teeth with god knew what.

"Two, this is One. They're… armed with swords and bows. Intel states they're also being supported by… fantasy creatures. I'm getting all of this over the net as I hear it, Two."

This time, not even Johnson had anything to say. The platoon's suspicions were confirmed. There indeed was a gate to another world. A fantasy one at that. Now they had to go clean up the mess it was making.

It didn't take long to figure out there was uncertainty amongst the platoon, uncertainty Aldritch was quick to detect.

"All tanks, this is One. I know what you're thinking and I need you to squash it. It doesn't matter who these fuckers are or where they came from. We're going to stop their bullshit right here and now. There's people over there dying, people who were just off having a normal day and living their lives. I need you to keep your heads on straight and perform. This is what you asked for. This is what you signed up for. This isn't our home but we're obligated to this country as its ally. That means their people should be just as important to us. So dig down deep, find whatever hatred you need and put that into action. Sound off in sequence."

It was as if a lightswitch was flipped and in moments uncertainty was replaced with determination.

"One, this is Two. Lima Charlie!"

"One, this is Three, Lima Charlie!"

Finally Kincaid's tank, the combat veterans of the platoon.

"One, this is Four, Lima Charlie!"

"All tanks, this is One. I think I just got hard hearing that. Death before dismount, boys. Let's give em hell."

Once the radio checks were carried out, the entire platoon net went silent. Anxious eyes glanced through gun sights and loaders manned their 240s machineguns as the convoy went full speed towards the capital. Everywhere the tankers looked, they already saw signs of chaos. Cars began to pile up as they made their way from whatever it was that was going on in the capital, Japanese law enforcement doing their best to maintain order as they directed traffic.

At one point Kincaid had flipped a switch on his station to see if he could listen in on one of the channels. He quickly wished he hadn't as his ears were bombarded with a mess of radio transmissions in alternating languages.

"Karera wa kaibutsuda!"

"Soko no ue ni soko ni! Hi!"

"Hai, amerikahito wa koko ni ori, a watashitachi o enjo shite imasu."

"Call it what it is, it's a fucking ogre. Fire in the hole!"

"They're just pouring out of the portal over. We clear to drop bombs? That should clean all that shit up."

"Negative negative! Do not drop bombs, stick to clearing the skies! We can _**not**_ risk collateral."

Off in the distance, thick black clouds of smoke poured into the sky. The occasional jet screeched by the convoy as they went off to engage whatever the hell was flying above the buildings.

Whatever the hell was going on, the tanks of Charlie Company would see to it that it was put down.

* * *

 **1300 HOURS, OUTSKIRTS OF THE GINZA DISTRICT**

Lieutenant William Van Hauser and his squad fast roped out of their CH-53 transport helicopter hitting the ground hard. As they landed each readied their weapons and scattered to secure immediate perimeter.

Van Hauser checked his wrist mounted GPS. They were still way off from their target. The reason for this being the large concentration of buildings towards the city center. Not wanting to be caught between buildings and the "winged assets" the enemy had the transport helicopters were given strict orders to only make drop offs near the congested areas when absolutely necessary.

At any rate, Van Hauser's squad had orders to make their way to the embassy and help secure it. If they ran into any civilians along the way, they were to assist them and direct them to the nearest evacuation center. Currently, the main concentration of civilians was the old Imperial Palace. Its large walls and heavy gates were adequate enough to protect them until the situation was resolved.

The lieutenant sighed before pulling his coyote brown balaclava up to filter out the dust and smoke from fog of war ahead, some of the other Marines doing the same. Whirling his hand in the air for a few moments, Van Hauser promptly pointed in the direction they needed to go before muttering over his boom mic.

"Alright, let's go. Boyd, I need your eyes sharp."

One of the Marines brandishing an M39 simply gave a thumbs up before following in behind the others and with that the squad began to make its way through the city.

As they turned a corner around a large office building they heard men speaking in a different language and the sobs of women. Hugging the wall, Van Hauser took point and peeked around the corner, his marksman peeking around with his rifle.

In a small intersection, there were eight men dressed in various types of medieval armor yelling at a group of civilians. Their swords and spears gleamed as they brandished them. Leading them was a man on horseback, someone of importance. The dead giveaway being his red plumed helmet.

Van Hauser readied his M4 before he turned back around and muttered to his squad. "Eight guys on foot, one on horseback, on my mark engage." He counted down from five and with the precision and speed of a viper, they engaged this new enemy.

To the enemy warrior party's leader it had all happened so fast, the sound of thunder echoed and his men dropped. What strange magic had the ability to kill a man with an entry and exit wound, leaving only a gaping hole in its wake? Before he had the time to ride forward to attack these transgressors, his horse gave out from under him, pinning him to the ground.

"Tangos down, squad move in and secure civilians."

As they moved up Van Hauser motioned to the squad's Corpsman to begin looking over the civilians. They looked shocked but nothing short of joyous, they hadn't been expecting Americans to be the ones saving them. They sobbed and thanked them in Japanese before Van Hauser pointed them in the right direction towards the Imperial Palace. Once the civilians moved out of harm's way, Van Hauser made his way over to the downed leader, motioning for a corpsmen to follow him in.

The lieutenant and the corpsmen eyed the downed and knocked out leader for a few moments before the corpsmen kneeled down and checked his pulse. He gave a thumbs up.

"He's alive."

Van Hauser nodded before signalling to his squad's radioman. "Hey, get on the horn and see if we can get any fucking wheels down here, we got an HVT ***** in need of a quick extraction—"

Suddenly, the enemy leader began to kick and scream in an effort to get the horse off him. A desperate hand reached for his weapon, a notion quickly dissuaded with a firm buttstroke from the Corpsmen's M16.

The pair merely eyed the now unconscious warrior for a moment before the corpsmen looked at Van Hauser and shrugged.

"What? He was getting uppity."

"Good one, Doc. Hope you got plenty more where that came from."

As the pair eyed the comatose leader Boyd made his way over to the scene and chuckled.

"Shit, welcome to Earth, asshole."

* * *

 **1400 HOURS, U.S. EMBASSY, GINZA DISTRICT**

This whole day had turned into nothing short of a nightmare. There really were medieval soldiers and creatures pouring through a gate and to make matters worse, they had begun turning their attention towards the embassy.

Embassy personnel watched from behind the building's walls as what token Marines served as security did their best to hold the hordes at bay, even with a FAST team having just arrived the situation looked bleak.

Even with the tall thick walls protecting the compound, the enemy was persistent and the Marines were beginning to run low on ammo. To make matters worse, several large humanoids best described as ogres were chipping away at the gate, their massive clubs weakening it more and more.

Most of the Marine's air assets were focused on achieving air superiority in the skies, such was the way the U.S military operated. Once that was achieved they could attack ground targets with impunity.

That meant all ground forces had to slug it out street by street with an enemy who had the edge as far as numbers went. Not that it mattered though, it wasn't the first time Marines fought and beat a numerically superior foe.

Meanwhile, those lucky few inside the embassy who got their hands on radios listened in to the multitude of channels as the chaos continued elsewhere.

"Solid copy. This is Raptor One, I have winged asset in my scope. Fox One, Fox One."

"Any USMC forces operating in the area this is Blackjack Five, I have wounded and am running low on ammo and these fuckers keep coming! Shit! Tango Down! We're currently holding position at _*kzzzt*_ intersection, we need immediate reinforcement over!"

"Yeah! Yeah! See that big fucker over there?! Backblast clear!"

"Roger that Viper Six this is Viper Five coming in hot, guns guns guns."

"I don't give a flying fuck what they approve or don't approve! We have men and people down there getting overrun!"

"That's an affirm, Overlord. JSDF forces have linked up with us. We're moving in over."

Suddenly one transmission seemed to carry loud over all the others.

Any USMC forces operating in the area be advised, armored support is now on the field and en route to the U.S Embassy. Callsign is Horsemen, frequency is 1156, over.

Tanks had arrived.

* * *

 **1430 HOURS, OUTSKIRTS OF THE GINZA DISTRICT**

After what had felt like a lifetime of anxious driving and praying the bridges and roads could support them, the tanks finally arrived in Ginza. Rural landscapes and small towns became replaced with tall skyscrapers as the convoy continued towards the chaos.

They were well and waist deep in the proverbial shit now, the softer skinned vehicles having long been tasked to other areas in order to stay out of the tanks' way. The four behemoths sat arranged in a makeshift box formation in the center of an intersection. Their turrets jerked left and right as they maintained their sectors of fire, eagerly awaiting their next orders.

Aldritch looked around at the claustrophobic city streets, occasional glancing up at the sky and watching the odd dragon or two get pegged by a jet or helicopter.

Dragons, actual dragons.

Aldritch gave a nervous glance up at the sky before reaching into his sponson box and pulling a map out. He eyed it for a few moments before keying his comm helmet back.

"All Horsemen, you are cleared to go condition one on all weapon systems. You have the go ahead to engage any hostile forces you see fit en route to the embassy. Try to keep it to CAN rounds and small arms whenever possible though, we're not trying to tear this place up too much."

Once all the tank commanders rogered up, Aldritch came over the net once more.

"Alright, Bravo section, you're going to take the street parallel to the one Alpha section travels down. We'll be able to cover more ground more this way."

Each tank once again rogered up and the two sections of two tanks split off down different streets, they maintained constant radio checks, the threat of losing signal from the large buildings between them a constant threat.

Meanwhile, _Here We Go Again_ took the lead in its section. Turret traversing left and right, it cruised through the blood-soaked and battle-torn streets. A modern predator searching for its not so modern prey.

Kincaid toggled his comm helmet to the rear,"Little John, maintain current speed and keep an eye out for civvies. Last thing we need is to be making pancakes and become war criminals."

"You… got it Four Eyes." Benitez had sounded nervous. It was to be expected, it was his first combat operation. Tank or not, only a fool went into his first operation fearless. Always respect the enemy. It also didn't help he was driving through narrow streets.

"Yo relax, you're doing fine. Just listen to us. Keep your head on a swivel and you'll be alright. Scouts honor, nigga." Elton soothed

Elton also had his own world he was absorbed in. Between tactical data on his Blue Force Tracker constantly updating and scanning for targets using his remotely controlled M48 .50 caliber heavy machine gun, he too had a lot on his mind.

Every so often, he looked at the photo of his daughter and wife mounted next to his tank commander's sight and breathe a small prayer before getting back to work. Suddenly, a large mob of civilians turned the corner and ran directly at the tanks in Bravo Section. Benitez slammed on the brakes, the tank lurching to a halt.

"Fucking smooth. Ease on the brakes, asshole. Just relax man, it's gonna be fine. You're safe down there."

"R-roger."

As this exchange happened, Wilkes emerged from his loader's hatch and started directing the civilians down and to another street to the right of the tanks, his eyes being the only thing exposed from behind his dark green balaclava.

Then something dawned on Bravo Section: the civilians were being chased. Sure enough, their pursuers came around the corner. Screaming and rattling their swords as they let out a warcry as they tried to continue their killing.

Only to stop dead in their tracks once they saw what was waiting for them around the corner.

Two large tan behemoths sat staggered, men in strange clothing atop them. The behemoths wailed like ghosts as the air behind them was heated and distorted, their squat heads jerking around before resting on them. A few of the medieval soldiers almost dropped their weapons at this sight as fear began to fill their eyes, they had thought this conquest would go unopposed no matter how strange this new world was.

They were about to learn just how wrong they were, the hard way.

Elton and Kincaid went to work, seamlessly calling fire commands as they took advantage of the confusion.

"Heads up! Enemy infantry to our direct front!"

"Identified! Range eighty meters!"

"Fire!"

"Coax on the way!"

A flurry of rounds erupted from the tank's coaxially mounted machine gun. Walking the rounds up, Kincaid sawed the swordsmen in half like a hot knife through butter. Those that escaped the onslaught ran terrified back towards the horse mounted cavalry coming down the street.

"Target!"

This time, it was Elton's turn to 'trim the lawn.' Sighting in with his .50 cal, he armed the gun and went to work. With Kincaid lasing the targets to get a distance the two once again coordinated their fire commands.

"Horse-mounted cavalry, dead front!"

"Identified! Range ninety meters and closing!"

"Caliber fifty!"

The sound of the heavy rounds being sent down the street was loud and powerful. The Browning M2 machine gun had been a solid workhorse in the U.S. armed forces for decades. It was hard hitting and very messy as both the enemy and the tankers witnessed.

The swordsmen and cavalry were mulched into meat chunks as the powerful rounds chewed them up. To say it was a turkey shoot was an understatement. They never stood a chance. When the bodies stopped moving Elton confirmed the kills.

"Horsemen One, this is Horsemen four. Engaged and destroyed one set of troops and one set of cavalry. Now continuing mission—woah, wait, hold on."

Before Elton could finish sending up the kills a large humanoid creature emerged from a smaller building with a roar. Dust and debris kicked up as the beast turned and glared at the strange boxes that had killed its allies.

In one hand it held a club and in the other and street light pole. It was an ugly thing, in fact, it looked not unlike a giant boar that somehow figured out to walk upright. Before Elton could even tell Wilkes to load a Canister round, its face came apart like confetti. The whole street shook with the shockwave of a main gun going off.

The Canister or "Can" round is essentially a giant shotgun shell designed to be used against massed infantry or light skinned vehicles. When fired, thousands of tungsten steel pellets fly forward and shred anything in their path that isn't sturdy enough. In this case, the unlucky ogre simply hadn't been "sturdy enough"

The ogre stood there for a moment as if the body hadn't found out it was dead, then finally toppled back and into the building it emerged from. Elton poked his head out of his hatch and looked behind him.

The kill had gone to Parker's tank, _Cry Sum Moar._ During the initial machine gun assault, Parker had maneuvered his tank to the right of _Here We Go Again_ to get eyes on the targets that had been coming down the street. Even over the carnage Parker's chuckle was audible over the net.

"Hey, I got one."

* * *

 **1500 HOURS, U.S. EMBASSY**

The enemy had finally broken down the gate and poured into the embassy compound. The Marines began to fall back towards the building, covering each other as teams bound back.

Two marines had already fallen, their lives given to save their brothers-in-arms as they held back a seemingly endless tide of steel and bodies. When bullets ran dry, they drew steel and leapt into the fray. When their ka-bars broke, they bit and clawed like an animal possessed. Finally overwhelmed, they clutched primed grenades and as spears and swords pierced their kevlar.

Even so, the enemy was gaining ground. Their superior numbers overwhelmed the Marines' guns and guts, pushing the soldiers back into the building With every inch gained, the invaders suffered terribly, but still they came closer.

A thunderous explosion shook the building, the horde pausing as their greatest muscle, a great ogre, seemed to disappear along with part of the wall. The top half of its body was missing, its spine jutting out from the stump that was its lower half.

Bullets came upon their flank. A crossfire between the hunkered Marines and the newly arrived help was simply too much for the invaders. A reckoning had come.

 **XXXXXXX**

 ** _A short distance away from the embassy…_**

"Target."

Elton gave Kincaid a pat on the back as he nailed two of the large ogres at the embassy gate. After street to street clearing, the tanks had finally arrived. This, however, only brought more problems.

The enemy force was still substantial and were making its way towards Bravo section; Alpha section had gotten bogged down by piled up abandoned cars and were slowly making their way up. This meant the two tanks in Bravo section had to face a large wave of angry infantry and cavalry on their own.

"Here they come! Light em up!" Both tanks in the section began pouring fire into the enemy ranks, they had to restrict their usage of main guns. The risk of collateral damage to the embassy was too great, even with the canister rounds.

The enemy fell before a wave of rounds sprayed from the two tanks, but they kept coming. Kincaid had to hand it to them: they were stupid but determined. With two tanks and three machine guns a piece, the enemy had no chance. Arrows continuously bounced off heavy alloy, their efforts futile.

Seeing an opportunity to save some ammo, Elton came over the net. "Hey Three, how's about we get the tracks dirty?"

Parker responded with smirk. "Yeah. Lets do some off roadin', on your lead."

With that both tanks began to drive forward, closing the gap with the enemy, their machine guns raking them down. At this advance, the enemy began to falter and retreat, terrified. Never had they ever fought beasts with hides so thick even the greatest of arrows couldn't pierce.

Suddenly _Here We Go Again_ halted, Benitez had applied the brakes, meanwhile, _Cry Sum Moar_ continued forward. With this lopsided gap, some of the enemy advanced towards the still tank, thinking the great beast had somehow tired.

"Little John what the fuck are you doing? Push forward!" Elton yelled at Benitez.

"Fuck, this is **_loco_** man!"

Benitez grabbed his helmet and squinted his eyes. Watching people get gunned down and torn apart was one thing, but crushing them beneath the tracks? He just couldn't bring himself to do it. It didn't feel right. Too much had happened so fast.

By this point, Elton was getting sick and tired of Benitez's bellyaching. "JESUS CHRIST MAN FUCKING GO!"

Meanwhile, three soldiers had taken advantage of the situation. Believing the large beast to have fallen asleep, they boarded it and began climbing atop the turret.

And right into Wilkes's 240.

It was a quick ordeal, all three soldiers being minced before falling off the side and down the tank's front slope. With just enough consciousness to see the now moving tracks coming at them, their screams were inaudible over the tank's turbine engine.

Finally catching up with its sister tank, _Here We Go Again_ came to halt outside the embassy gate, pivoting in spot it plugged the gap in the gate with the other tank by its side.

"Little John, people live and die in battle. You hesitate? People die!" Elton berated Benitez, shouting into his comm.

"These assholes came here and began killing innocent people! They clearly don't want to play nice so neither will we! As far as I'm concerned, we're gonna treat them like the fucking savages they are, so when I say to fucking run them over, you fucking do it. Welcome to tanks! This shit isn't pretty, you understanding me?"

There was some silence before Benitez responded. "Yeah. It won't happen again."

"It better fucking not, bro."

Satisfied, Elton rubbed his forehead and waited for Alpha section to show up. When they did, Aldritch relayed orders to Elton's section. They were to advance towards the Imperial Palace, hold that area and push the enemy back towards the gate.

Elton and Parker rogered and began to push to the palace.

* * *

 **1600 HOURS IMPERIAL PALACE**

After a long period of trying to stay scarce through the war torn streets, Itami finally found himself at the palace. Large groups of civilians crowded outside its gate, some looking for their loved ones, others just trying to calm down. Itami saw a guard house with two police officers in it, they needed to open the gates now.

They had a long series of back and forth arguments with Itami, before the booth's phone began ringing. Answering it, one of the officers froze stiff before complying to whatever orders had been given.

"Civilians have top priority." With that, the gates slowly opened and the civilians poured inside. Itami ran inside with them before standing at the entrance. Now, they had to wait for local riot control and the JSDF to arrive.

Within moments riot vans began to pull into the scene, disgorging entire teams of riot control officers with shields and canister launchers. SDF copters hovered overhead, covering teams of Japanese soldiers and trucks as they moved into position. The enemy approached and the JSDF was ready to take back their city.

Soon the enemy warriors began to appear en mass. Supported by ogres and overhead dragon support, they advanced undaunted. Right into the stiff defense.

Volleys of CS gas were launched into their ranks with JSDF soldiers in overwatch positions pouring fire into them. Stunned and completely taken back, they were cut down. Meanwhile, their dragons were gunned down by Japanese AH-64 Apaches overhead, a one sided dog fight to say the least.

Against such a quick and sudden onslaught, the enemy began to fall back.

Or so he thought. Soon a fresh wave of enemy forces appeared again, this time they were much larger in number and had more dragons. Once again the defense began its onslaught of the enemy forces, meanwhile the Apaches broke off to dance a deadly dance in the skies with the dragons.

Itami had been watching this all and gulped. How long would it be before they ran out of ammo? More importantly, how many of them were there?

Suddenly, the sound of heavy calibre gunfire followed by large thuds ushered forth, the enemy being chewed up in short order. The palace defenders didn't have to wait long to find their answer as AH-1Z Vipers began conducting gun runs on the enemy.

Only one military operated that variant of Cobra. U.S. Marines.

Shortly after, missile impacts began to register on the dragons flying above. Their owners, F/A-18s quickly letting loose cannon fire of their own on ground targets before screeching by and banking up higher into the sky.

This had greatly taken the pressure off the rotary assets, allowing both them and the ground forces a moment of reprieve before more U.S. choppers began to enter the area. Once they landed, the Marines began to take up positions next to the riot officers and JSDF soldiers, their corpsmen moving among the civilians and administering aid.

As Itami breathed a sigh of relief he looked around and saw a Marine lieutenant yelling at his men directing them to various positions.

As he approached, the Marine in question turned towards him speaking with a German accent. "Sir, I'm gonna have to ask you to give us some breathing room. We're here to help secure this area."

Itami look puzzled before frowning and standing his ground.

"My name is Lieutenant Itami Youji of the Self Defense Force, I've been helping coordinate the evacuation of these civilians!"

The Marine officer's expression changed as he promptly gave Itami the respect befitting his rank as a fellow officer.

"Lieutenant William Van Hauser, Third Battalion, Fourth Marine Regiment, Bravo Company, First Platoon! Sorry for the delay. There was a bit of a political debate between your superiors and ours and only just now got resolved. Most of us have been deep in the city trying to secure the embassy and the surrounding areas. We're just now starting to spread out and begin support operations."

Itami placed a hand on the wired lieutenant shoulder a look of calm upon his face. "No worries, we're all friends here. Your help here is greatly appreciated by us and our people. Thank you."

Suddenly the sound of grinding tracks could be heard. The Marines had brought tanks, somehow.

Itami ran out the front gate and saw two tan M1A1 tanks cruise over the bridge, as he looked closer he saw a familiar face atop one of them.

It was Aldritch, the lieutenant he had met the day prior. Itami stood there as the tanks drove past. They would go forward with the rest of the troops and take care of the enemy. Itami had done his part, done all he could, all he had to do was wait.

As the tanks continued on their way Itami looked back at the palace. He could make out all the wounded, hear their laments over their wounds and the loss of their loved ones or homes. For the first time in a long time, Itami felt something tug at him deep within. Something that burrowed deep into his core and brought out a sense of determination he had never felt.

All his life he had done the bare minimum, done his part. Today would be different and for the first time he wanted to do more than just his part. He wanted to be looked up to, respected.

He wanted to serve his country. Things would never be the same after today Itami knew he'd be one of them.

As the last of the tanks began to drive off Itami started to chase after it his sandals hitting the pavement harder with each step as he called out.

"WAIT! I WANT TO FIGHT! LET ME FIGHT!"

Itami got closer to the tank as he continued to yell but the vehicles turbine was drowning out his voice. Desperate for some way to reach out to the crew within the lieutenant spotted his solution, a small tan box to the right of the engine exhaust. The "grunt phone" as he remembered the tankers calling it. With that he could communicate to the crew within. Itami quickly opened it up and eyed the small black phone frantically trying to keep up with the tank as he yelled into it.

"WAIT! STO-"

In seconds the tank jerked to a halt causing Itami to almost slam his face into the vehicle's headlight. Soon a tall husky crewmember made his way over to the back of the vehicle and looked down at the officer incredulously. All he could see was a deranged looking civilian at first.

"Yo, what the fuck is wrong with you!? Get out of here!" The crewmember paused for a moment before lowering his balaclava and revealing the face of Wilkes. "Sir?! Lieutenant Itami?! What the fuck are you doing here?!"

Itami looked up at the Marine with a look of determination as he filled his lungs with volume. "LET ME ONBOARD! I WANT TO FIGHT, THIS IS MY HOME DAMNIT!"

Unsure of whether or not the Marine had heard he tried a different approach. "I'M ORDERING YOU AS A SUPERIOR OFFICER!"

Then, the strangest thing happened. Wilkes began to laugh, his hearty voice loud enough even over the roar of the engine. "HAHA! ALRIGHT! SHIT DAMN SIR. I LIKE THAT SHIT!"

Wilkes reached down with a gloved hand and effortlessly pulled Itami on board with a grin. "YOU WANNA FIGHT!? COME ON THEN SIR!"

As the pair made their way to the top Elton's face twisted into a look of confusion as he saw the oddly garbed Itami with his loader. "Sir?! What the hell?! We can't just let you on here!"

Wilkes laughed. "He wants to fight with us! This is his home damnit!"

"Well no shit!" Elton reached to the side of his hatch and tossed Itami an M4, the officer quickly handling it with the hands of a trained soldier. "Alright, game on sir!"

Itami held the carbine in his hands and quickly racked and readied it with before slinging it and mounting the tank from the rear. Once he was situated he gave Elton a thumbs and in moments the tank began to slowly rumble forward as it began to make it away across the bridge. Itami had been on tanks for joy rides before, but this was an entirely different matter and an entirely different tank to boot.

Yet all the same, he was no stranger to the war stories of Abrams tanks in Iraq. He knew he was on a very capable machine and with very capable crewman. He felt, safe. More importantly he felt better now. He was actually doing his job.

Suddenly and without warning, his world shook him to his very core.

The tank had fired its main gun at a group of infantry, turning around Itami saw a large dust cloud slowly begin to dissipate in front of the tank. As it faded away he saw a scene of utter carnage. All that was left of the enemy soldiers was a giant red paste on the ground. Bones and other various body parts littered the ground and Itami was certain he could hear laughter inside the tank.

As they continued on their journey Itami couldn't help but wonder how odd a sight him ontop of the tank was, no doubt he'd see photos of himself on the internet sooner or later.

In the coming days, he would find that out to be exactly the case.

Eventually, the tanks stopped at an intersection as two other tanks lumbered in to meet them. This was it, they were getting ready for the final push.

Suddenly Elton popped his head out of his hatch and turned to face Itami confirming his suspicions. "Alright, sir! Cover our blind spots! It's about to get heavy!"

Suddenly Itami watched as the other three tanks formed in behind, each of their turrets was traversed to a different position so as to cover all angles. Itami felt a sort of peace, throughout the chaos of all the fighting here the tanks moved through the worst of it. Like giants of old, they marched on proud, ignorant of the enemy and for good reason.

Then it happened. On all sides, enemy infantry began to pour in. Shouldering the M4, Itami took a breath and began to open fire. The first thing he noticed was how smooth the weapon fired. If there was one thing the Americans prided themselves on it was their weapons.

Something the Japanese military knew better than most, a great deal of their arsenal were American made.

As Itami shot at enemy footsoldiers the tank couldn't fix its gun onto, the other tanks filled in any other gaps with their small arms. It was brutal and everywhere he looked was death. This was his home and now it had became a charnel house of carnage.

So he killed and killed and killed, pausing only to ask for a magazine from Wilkes. Meanwhile, Marine and Japanese gunships sang their own death song from above, raining cannon fire onto the defenseless enemy. By now Marine infantry had caught up began to move up next to the tanks, covering the tanks' blind sides they worked as a cohesive unit.

For hours, city block after city block was cleared, until finally they turned into the intersection where the gate was. This had also been the enemy's staging ground, and they clearly weren't expecting to see four tan iron behemoths and a horde of angry soldiers with them.

From the moment the first tank entered the intersection to the moment the last tank had followed in behind, there was non-stop killing. Any enemy infantry who didn't run and get gunned down, were crushed beneath the tanks' tracks.

Meanwhile, Marine infantry closed the gap and beat any enemy soldiers they caught to a bloody pulp or hosed them down with rifle fire. This wasn't their home, but they certainly fought like it was.

Once the JSDF ground troops entered the intersection, the killing had reached a new crescendo. For a moment, Itami had just stopped firing and watched.

He watched as his entire life was flipped upside down.

* * *

 **Jargon/Acronyms**

HVT: High Value Target


	6. Repercussions

**Before we begin with the latest installment in this tale, I believe some clarity is in order for the make up of Horsemen platoon. This is slightly lengthy, but it will make following each tank and its crew MUCH easier.**

 **2D Tank Battalion Charlie Company Headquarters Platoon, "The Four Horsemen"  
**

 **Horsemen 1 "Boss Hoss"  
Tank Commander-XO, Lieutenant James Aldritch**

 **Loader-Lance Corporal Thomas Moores  
**

 **Gunner- Corporal Michael Walker**

 **Driver-Corporal Tanner Reeves**

 **Horsemen 2 "Southern Belle"**  
 **Tank Commander-Sergeant Abe Johnson**

 **Loader- Lance Corporal Herman Reese**

 **Gunner- Lance Corporal Norman Strab**

 **Driver-Lance Corporal Kyle Smith**

 **Horsemen 3 "Cry Sum Moar"**  
 **Tank Commander-Corporal "Cowboy" Rob Parker**

 **Loader- Lance Corporal James Tyreese**

 **Gunner-Lance Corporal Michael Qwade**

 **Driver-Lance Corporal Ken Dunn**

 **Horsemen 4 "Here We Go Again"**  
 **Tank Commander-Corporal Parker "Honcho" Elton**

 **Loader-Lance Corporal Darian "Rampage" Wilkes Jr.**

 **Gunner-Corporal Jasper "Four Eyes" Kincaid**

 **Driver-Private First Class George "Little John" Benitez**

 **The first two tanks are part of Alpha Section and the last two are part of Bravo Section**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Repercussions  
**

 _"I come in peace. I didn't bring artillery. But, I'm pleading with you, with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me I'll Kill you all."  
_

Marine Corps General James Mattis to Iraqi leaders.

 **AUGUST 3RD 1800 HOURS, CENTRAL GINZA DISTRICT "GROUND ZERO"  
**

After nearly an entire day of fighting it was finally over. In front of the gate sat a stiff defensive ring of fortified troops and armored trucks their weapons all aimed at its mouth.

At the forefront of this ring sat the four horsemen. Positioned at the very front of the defense they had been the backbone of the push towards the gate. Their heavy armor and guns had been the shield and sword of the allied forces. They had came, saw, and conquered yet again. With the exception of the occasional comm check or situation report, all was quiet. Meanwhile, the world sat and watched waiting for what was to come next.

After some time the ceasefire was called and the troops began to stand down. Sighs of relief echoed from all the men and women who fought that day.

Medical aid from both allied forces began to be distributed among the wounded and hostages rounded up. It had been a long bloody battle, but there were still rules of war. Fair treatment of enemy forces was still the way the civilized world did business.

Meanwhile, the four tanks began to show signs of life, hatches were opened up and men began to clamber out from within. Tired and dirty they began to get their first breaths of fresh air after hours of fighting inside their armored hulls. Standing on top of their steeds, they looked like noble knights of old. They had came to the aid of their fellows with swift and vengeful justice, but in the end, they were still young tired men.

Laughs and pats on the back for a good day's work began to be exchanged. Tankers were a hard working bunch, fighting not only the enemy but the stresses of armored warfare itself. There were even some who cried, the joy of seeing their fellow tankers alive cherished, and for some the first taste of battle had been experienced.

Kincaid clambered out of his gunners station and onto the top of his tank's turret. Looking around he surveyed the scene with a lit cigarette hanging from his mouth and a can of monster clenched in his left hand.

He had done it yet again it had been a long time since he last fired at the enemy, but the old ways never left him. He was just as sharp now as he was when he first deployed to Afghanistan. He took a seat on the edge of the turret letting his legs stretch as he took his comm helmet off and loosened his plate carrier vest. He sat there for a few moments as he let the gravity of what just happened sink in.

There was no way he was getting out anytime soon, people were going to want answers for what had just happened and the only way they were going to get those answers was with force. The sort of force that required Marines.

"Just like old times huh?"

Kincaid felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around at the source of the voice. It was Elton, with a groan of old muscles and aching bones the tank commander took a seat next to his old gunner and friend. The two watched the various infantry teams from both military forces scramble around, every so often a wounded enemy would be picked up and taken to an aid station.

"Yeah, something like that. This was the last place I'd ever expect to be killing anything."

They watched as leaders yelled at their troops and the process of post-combat actions began to take place. There was a lot of cleaning up to do.

Meanwhile, Wilkes was at the front of the tank talking to Benitez. The driver was still a little shook up from the whole ordeal, but he had done well. Hell of a first training mission though.

As this went on Itami slowly clambered around the turret and sat in between his new comrades. He sat silently for a few moments as he eyed the carnage that had been brought to his home. Earthquakes and natural disasters were no stranger to him or any Japanese citizen, but this? They had been invaded their people butchered without any rhyme or reason.

He felt sick but more importantly he felt confused.

"You look like you could use one of these sir."

Itami looked over at Elton and eyed the half crushed pack of cigarettes sitting in his heavily calloused hand.

"Thanks but-"

"No trust me on this sir, you're gonna want one of these."

Reluctantly the lieutenant slowly grabbed the pack and protruded one of the nicotine sticks from within. He eyed it for a few moments before putting it into his mouth with a shaking hand, in seconds he heard the clack of a zippo and took a few puffs as Elton lit the cigarette for him. The first few drags were clumsy, but he quickly fell back into the rhythm of things.

This wasn't his first time after all.

"I-I don't really smoke much anymore. Used to be how I coped with stress." He his eyes started to take on a glazed look as he watched the cleanup continue. "I didn't think I'd be doing it...over this."

The two Marines sat silent unsure of what to say. They knew how to direct anger towards an enemy hell most veterans did, but they'd never experienced having their own home invaded. 9/11 was one thing, but that was before they could even enlist. Any Iraq or Afghanistan veteran knew it was the spark to the war on terror, the war they and many others had participated in.

But it had never been personal, not like this. This wasn't a terrorist attack this had been something much more.

"How do you guys do it?"

Both of the Marines looked at Itami Elton taking the lead as he answered on their behalf.

"Sir?"

"How do you do it? Kill the way you do, how do you..." Itami waved his hand towards the scene ahead. "How do you deal with something like this?"

Elton put a hand on the shaken lieutenant's shoulder. "Are you angry?"

Itami took another drag. "Y-yeah I feel really angry."

"Hold onto that, you're gonna need it. When the fight comes again and something tells me it will you need to put that anger towards your work."

Itami shook his head. "I killed people today I-"

Kincaid put a hand on Itami's shoulder. "No you killed the _**enemy**_. Don't go feeling sorry for cock suckers like these guys, they don't deserve that. Oh sure the wounded will get treated fairly but when you shoot? You shoot to kill and you don't hold back a goddamn thing."

The two Marines exchanged glances before Kincaid continued. "If you think we felt sorry for the insurgency in Afghanistan, you're wrong."

Itami sat there for a moment as he let the words linger in his mind. These men were younger than him and they had probably killed their first man just as they had became old enough to legally drink. They went off to a country far from home and fought for something intangible that they couldn't hope to understand.

He had only enlisted to support his hobby a means to an end and something to just keep him busy. Now he was in their boat a real end-state to his work, his training.

"You know, there was a comiket today." Itami laughed nervously. "Real shame huh?"

Kincaid nodded in agreement. "No shit? Those dickheads couldn't have picked a worse time to attack huh?"

"Yeah...really bad timing."

Kincaid felt his heart drop.

 _Terrible timing._

* * *

 **AUGUST 10TH 0800 HOURS, WHITE HOUSE EAST WING, WASHINGTON DC  
**

In a large press conference the current U.S. President Barrack Obama stood at a podium in front of a crowd of eager news reporters. On either side of him secret service agents stood off to the side. Monitoring the situation behind dark shades they listened to the multitude of questions the press threw at the commander in chief.

Just another day in the White House.

"Mister President, who were the attackers and what did they want?"

"We currently have no idea who these aggressors were or what they wanted. What we _**do**_ know is that upon their arrival from the so called Gate they immediately began to attack the local Japanese populace indiscriminately."

"Mister President, is it true that the Marines immediately began to insert into Japan without approval from the Japanese government?"

"The Marines' rapid response was a testament to their unwavering commitment to fighting against all enemies foreign and domestic. It was also a testament to our commitment to our Japanese allies, our Mutual Defense Treaty is an agreement we hold dear. Had the Marines not responded as quickly as they had, the situation might have deteriorated at a much faster pace. That been said our embassy in Ginza was under immediate attack and was in danger of being overrun by a sizeable enemy presence numbering in the thousands."

The questions continued. "Mister President, will we be aiding a Japanese incursion into this gate?"

Obama paused and looked around for a few moments, his tired eyes scanning over the crowd in front of him.

"I cannot answer that at this time."

With that the president promptly called the conference to a close and was escorted to his office by his secret service team, it had been a long morning so far and there was still the rest of the day to get through.

His Marines had done him proud, the casualty report reflected that too. They had sustained less than five KIA's and under twenty wounded if it had been a battle of modern proportions these statistics would be unheard of. Meanwhile, the enemy had sustained close to about 60,000 casualties during the fight and once again on a modern battlefield this would be unheard of.

Then again, this hadn't been anything close to a modern battle and there still were a lot of issues on the table. Chief of which being the fact that an incursion was very much in the works. Discussions between both him, the Joints Chiefs of Staff and the Japanese had been going on for quite some time. This was a unique situation that required a unique approach, better to let the watching world know what was going on when they needed to know.

The big key takeaway from the discussions was that the Third MEU would indeed be going through in an advisory role in order to assist a Japanese led incursion. Advisory was going to be the official term, in truth there was nothing advisory about sending tanks and armored fighting vehicles through.

The Americans were going there as a stopgap, babysitters, the next best "Reliable" option as far as making sure the incursion and subsequent occupation went as smooth as possible. There was also of course, the Mutual Defense Treaty. Japan and America's alliance was an ancient one that went back to the days of post WW2 reformations. The treaty ensured that both would aid the other militarily should the need arise. The benefits to this treaty were mutual, it allowed the Japanese to maintain their smaller defense force and gave them a powerful ally nearby should anything go wrong. For America this treaty allowed it to maintain bases in Japan and have a substantial presence in the pacific.

So it went without saying that the conditions of this treaty were what allowed American intervention in the first place.

Unofficially there were also other reasons for their intervention as well.

It was true that because the gate opened up on their lands the Japanese had every right to invade per their law, but they still had no idea exactly how they would carry operations out once they got there. Whether the nationalists wanted to admit it or not they weren't all too keen about running off into the unknown without backup. It was a unique situation and the argument of the JSDF being allowed to even "Invade" anywhere was constantly brought up. Gate or not there was still an entire world on the other side, one that no doubt had its own sovereign leadership.

In truth Obama needed this, his country needed this. This was their chance to show the world that the U.S. was not going to leave its allies to fend for themselves with taking care of problems they needed help with, NATO or not. This was their chance to show the world that although they had some hiccups before, the U.S. still had good intentions.

Even if those good intentions were often met with shaky results.

With his second and final term coming to a close and the uncertainty of the upcoming elections it would end his time in office on a unanimously positive note, something he needed given the recent events in Ukraine and elsewhere. The American people had started to become polarized the elections beginning to divide them as different candidates had begun their campaigns.

The gate opening had only put a momentary pause to that for a moment and for that moment the American people had came together in trying to figure out what had just happened. What this would mean for their loved ones in the armed forces.

The initial response to the embassy attack in Ginza had been met with a mixed bag of responses. Some argued the Marines had been too gung-ho dropping tanks and a sizable strike force right into a populated area. Others argued that had they not responded as quickly as they did there would have been a far greater loss of life.

Regardless, the upcoming operation would make or break their image in the eyes of both the Japanese and the watching world. Treaty or not the Japanese could still have just as easily declined American aid in the first place this was an act of goodwill and faith.

The insurance of having American firepower and training on their side wasn't a bad plus either.

Of course, there was also one other factor to consider, the possibility of resources. With America's cooperation and enthusiasm, the Japanese would be more than willing to share whatever commodities the Special Region had in its lands. At least this was what Obama and NATO commanders were hoping, being allies had to count for something.

As Obama sorted through the various paperwork and made calls to schedule the meetings required to get military operations underway he looked at a photo on his desk. It had been taken two days earlier and he had personally seen that the Marines involved were rewarded with the commendations befitting the actions they had carried out.

He stood next to them in front of their tanks, the Commander in Chief with his men America's 911 force in readiness. It was moments like these that brought pride to any truly patriotic president. Ultimately these men were the ones carrying out the will of the President and indeed Congress itself.

They deserved all the recognition and thanks they could get.

The Marines weren't the only ones who were awarded for valor. An Itami Youji of the JSDF had even been promoted and was called the hero of Ginza for his efforts in saving civilians. The picture of him riding atop one of the M1A1s had been the source of many magazine covers over the past few days.

Obama sighed and rubbed his forehead, the constant discussions over the phone and private meetings had been taxing at best and he still had plenty more on his plate in the coming months.

No rest for the wicked.

Obama ran a hand through his short graying hair and sighed before rubbing his eyes.

 _Just when things couldn't get anymore stressful._

* * *

 _Two days earlier,  
_

 **2400 HOURS UNKNOWN LOCATION, SPECIAL REGION  
**

Long before an incursion of any sort could be decided on both the Japanese and Americans could agree on one thing. They needed to get eyes on the other side, a rough idea of what exactly it was they were dealing with.

They needed a Special Operations team to go through.

When the decision to send such a team through the gate was made, there had been a great deal of discussion. Between the Japanese and Americans there were plenty of options to choose as far as highly trained operators went. Answers were needed quickly and efficiently, but who had the ability to carry out such an operation? MARSOC? Japanese Special Forces? Delta Force?

Eventually a decision was made one that many military leaders had long made their mind on. Even the Japanese couldn't argue they of all people needed results and quickly.

The U.S. Navy SEALS, SEAL Team Six, specifically. A name known throughout the world, feared or respected it didn't matter. This was a team that had time and time again stood against all odds. So they went into the dark abyss of the gate armed to the teeth, their faces hidden behind gas masks.

Many planners had felt like as though they had sent those men to their deaths, but when the first radio transmission was sent back cheers rang out.

They were there and ready to conduct operations.

 **XXXXXX**

Lieutenant Recker sighted in through the thermal sight for his SCAR-L carbine. Ahead of him was a small camp lit by fires with tents of various sizes set up throughout its perimeter. Guards could be seen patrolling in various intervals, but their security was lax. It was almost like they didn't think night raids were possible.

Well, from the world Recker and his men were from these sort of things were a constant threat.

Meanwhile, the rest of his men sat motionless ready for whatever order Recker would give. They had long taken off their gas masks in favor of balaclavas and quad-eyed NVGs once the air was found to be breathable. Recker marked any enemies carrying ranged weapons such as bows or crossbows to his sniper team hidden in a nearby tree the infrared laser from his PEQ-15 slowly lighting up each one. Providing overwatch from a vantage point his snipers would be the scalpel to see him and the rest of the team to their target.

Slowly lowering his non firing hand, Recker patched back to command using his helmet mounted boom mic.

"Command this is Phantom, be advised we have come across a small encampment possible HVT's located in central tents, sending camera feed to you now over."

On the other side of the gate U.S. and Japanese officers watched through monitors as the SEALS posted up outside the camp, hidden by the cover of darkness and brush they could see, but could not be seen. A day earlier a long series of cables and wires had been carried through the tunnel of the gate to the other side. Attached to a short range portable comm tower, they allowed both sides to maintain radio communications.

It was slapdash in a world of wireless communication, but for now it worked and that's what mattered.

Recker waited a few seconds before receiving the go ahead. "Roger that Phantom, you have green light to engage, capture and extract HVT's and bring them through the gate over."

"Solid copy, Phantom is moving in."

With that Recker signaled to his men via IR strobes. Like their callsign, they moved like phantoms towards the objective. Seeing a couple of archers patrolling around the camp Recker came over the net. "Lem, Dietz, drop the bows."

On the "s" in bows all the bowmen dropped. The only noise made was their bodies hitting the ground. Most of the camp had been asleep so logically they didn't have the consciousness to discern the noises as anything but the odd nocturnal animal passing through.

Big mistake, complacency kills.

"Tangos down providing overwatch now."

With a thumbs up Recker signaled back to the snipers and directed the other four SEALS to take out the patrolling guards quietly with their knives. It was over in momentsthe guards never had time to react as their throats were punctured and their screams muffled by gloved hands. Recker and the other two SEALS stacked up on one of the larger tent's entrances their carbines raised they waited for their team leader to prep a flash bang.

As soon as the pin was popped and the countdown to three finished they moved in to engage.

A loud bang followed by screams rang out as the SEALS moved into the tent, an elderly man had been in bed with two females. As the SEALS moved in two of the females moved with lightning speed to swords that were stowed next to the bed. As such they were deemed hostile and promptly dispatched.

Once that was done they bound and gagged the elder and planted C4 charges in the tent. As they moved outside the camp began to wake up. The flash bang had woken the camp up and men began to pour out trying to find the source of the noise. Anyone who came close to Recker and the other two were dropped by quiet and accurate head shots from the sniper team. Anyone who went into the main tent never had time to assess the situation as the C4 charges were immediately set off engulfing half the camp in a large explosion.

Textbook SEAL operation all the parts came together in choreographed destruction. Another flawless operation to Team Six's name.

"Command this is Phantom, HVT secured and beginning extraction to gate over."

"Roger that come on home."

Recker and the rest of the platoon including the snipers moved through the forest to a small clearing. At the center of the clearing were two four seater buggies, the SEALS' ride out of there. In moments, the men clambered aboard with the still struggling elder and engines roared to life as the buggies gunned it toward the gate entrance.

Thankfully it was a short trip and a quiet one at that. Soon the dark outline of the gate mouth came into sight and as the buggies began to file in one stopped to pickup the communications relay before gunning after the others.

After a few seconds one of the SEALS turned and looked at Recker as he radioed over the roar of the buggies, the green tint of his NVGs reflecting off the Buggies' high beams as he looked over at Recker from the passenger seat. "Hey boss did those females have...rabbit ears?!"

"Uh...yeah pretty sure they did, whatever lets just get the fuck through this tunnel and back home. I'm missing the game and you're buying the beer Lentz!"

With a laugh that echoed throughout the tunnel the SEALS continued their journey and returned home.

Meanwhile, the camp was in an uproar. They had been attacked at night by dark ghosts with green glowing eyes. These ghosts had killed with whispers and commanded fire magic that killed indiscriminately. Many sleepless nights were spent after that in fear the ghosts would return to carry their leaders away into the night.

Mission Accomplished.

* * *

 **AUGUST 23RD 1100 HOURS, CAMP FUJI MOTOR POOL  
**

The Marines of Horsemen platoon were crowded around a TV that had been hastily set up in the main building, the President was making a speech.

Kincaid rubbed the collar of his blouse as he watched the President's broadcast, feeling the unfamiliar extra chevron his new rank as Corporal provided him.

He **_really_** just wanted to get out however.

The new meritorious rank was nice, but it really didn't seem to make too much of a change on his life so far. Rank was a strange thing in the tank community, everyone was on the same page and knew what they had to do. As such, the usual yelling and power plays carried out in other MOS's was virtually nonexistent.

Nobody had time for that, being a tanker was stressful enough.

As the President began to talk mutters could be heard from among the tankers;

"Yo we're totally deploying."

"Oh yeah there's no way we aren't going over there, did you hear about the civilian deaths? Wasn't it like up to like the hundreds?"

"Yo this is fucking **_loco_** man, how do we even know if there's oxygen, or like if they speak a different language?"

"Amphibious?"

Finally the President began his long speech, it went on for a while, but the message was perfectly clear. They were going, Japan had requested American aid and it just so happened that the Third MEU was more than eager and prepared to give that aid. American citizens had been killed and once again America was off to go make someone answer for those deaths.

The Marines right at the forefront.

Aldritch began pumping his men up to him this was just another chance to prove both himself and his men to the brass. "Oh yeah Horsemen! We are _**fucking** _ going! Get ready to shoot to thrill!"

Or so he told himself in truth he was nervous beyond words.

Kincaid sighed as he did the unthinkable. He promptly took two cigarettes out and began to smoke them both at the same time, something he did only in the most extreme of stressful situations. "Son of a _**bitch**_ , here we go again."

He wasn't going home once again the Corps had demanded its pound of flesh, his country had demanded its pound of flesh.

Kincaid took another drag before making his way outside, stopping to crouch behind a wall and bury his face in his hands. To him this wasn't fair even if fair was a term he'd long parted with after his initial enlistment. He was so close, so close to being able to drop the proverbial rucksack and kick his boots off once and for good.

Then _**this**_ happened.

"Bruh, you good?"

Kinciad looked up at the rest of his crew, Wilkes in particular stopping to squad beside him and put a hand on his shoulders. Kincaid let the cigarettes hang from his mouth as he stared out into the distance.

"No...fuck man, no I'm not."

He let out a cloud of smoke before continuing, "What the hell man, why me? Why the fuck did this shit have to happen to me?" Kincaid sighed and leaned his head back against the wall, staring up into the sky for a few moments.

Wilkes rubbed his shoulder. "Man...is what it is. No sense fucking dwelling on it, gotta do what we gotta do." Elton made his way to Kincaid's front, staring down at him with folded arms.

"Yeah man, you know the music it's time to fucking dance." Elton offered his hand slowly hoisting Kincaid up. The two stared at each other for a few moments before Elton pat him on the shoulder, smirking all the while.

"Least we're doing this shit together man, hell I'm actually glad you'll be with us. You wouldn't abandon your bros would you?"

Kincaid took one final drag before dropping both the butts and crushing them under his boot.

"No...no I wouldn't."

"Damn right you wouldn't, besides poor Benitez would be lonely without your nerd ass to converse with. Ya'll might get lucky and even become real fairies!"

Benitez raised his coyote brown beanie revealing a raised eyebrow. "Ey, the fuck does that mean?"

"Exactly what the fuck you think it means, fucking nerd." Wilkes put Benitez in a headlock, the stocky Hispanic struggling for a few moments to try and break free to no avail. Kincaid chuckled as he watched the scene unfold, Wilkes and Benitez still struggling, Elton lighting a cigarette and putting his aviators on with a smile.

This was his family, they were going to rely on him just as much as he would rely on them in the coming months. No matter what bullshit came their way, they'd overcome.

After all misery loves company and the Marines had plenty of both.

* * *

In various parts of the world, the rest of Kincaid's family watched the news and reacted in various ways.

Kincaid's mother Alice rubbed her eyes, stifling back tears as she heard the news from her television in her condo in Jakarta. Her son was going off to war again and she couldn't even see him off. She sobbed as she booted up Viber on her phone quickly calling her boyfriend.

"David, it's J-Jasper. _**He's going off to war again**_!"

At the embassy in Sudan Kincaid's father saw the message quite differently, the old breed watching the new breed carrying on the Corp's legacy into combat once again. "Hell yeah Marines whoop that shit on again."

At the University of Mississippi, Kincaid's sister, Janice, watched the message from a television set up in her sorority's common room. As she heard the message her heart skipped a beat, a tear beginning to flow down from her eye. Her brother was going off to war, once again he was going to be put in harm's way.

"Oh no...not again."


	7. Tip of The Spear

**Chapter 5: Tip of The Spear  
**

 **"** _Yeah, though I walk through the valley of death I will fear no evil, for I am the meanest son of a bitch in the valley."_

Unknown Source, famous for its use in the military.

 **LATE OCTOBER, 1000 HOURS, CAMP FUJI**

Kincaid sorted through his gear for what felt like the hundredth time. He had painstakingly gone through the gear list and inventoried every item in great detail ensuring they were serviceable.

Once both the U.S President and Prime Minister of Japan called for Military action to be taken in a joint operation, his whole world of getting out had been completely torn asunder. There were a lot of politics involved up till now, most of which Kincaid didn't bother to follow. The basic idea was that since the gate formed on Japanese land, they had every right to send a force through it.

Even if there was a whole other world on the other side.

They wouldn't be alone however. The Third MEU would support a JSDF division in an advisory role during their operations into the "Special Region" as it was being called. The Mutual Defense Treaty between the two nations allowing American intervention in the first place.

Kincaid and the Marines knew better, though. A massive buildup of arms, armor, personnel, and navy ships off shore was certainly not advisory in any way. Nor were tanks and other heavy vehicles going through.

It had been a long three months; training with the JSDF, briefing, language classes, pre-deployment workups, tank maintenance, gear issue, and many other woes that led to a deployment had taken up most of Kincaid's and the others' time.

All of that hadn't been the only things going on, there was good word special forces teams from both allied forces had been doing covert strikes into the Special Region as it was now being called. Gathering intel and carrying out disruption operations, they had already begun to set the stage for an invasion.

During this time, Kincaid and many other Marines had maintained constant communication with their families, even getting the opportunity to see them one last time via a surprise flight out to see them. Not every Marine was so fortunate however and many including Kincaid would have to go off to war without seeing their loved ones one last time. Kincaid had bared with it though, it was the price his family had to pay for the divorce and service to the government.

They had sent him plenty of care packages however, the same ones that were still set to be inventoried. The same ones that Wilkes was now snooping through.

Dismissing the solemn thoughts from earlier, Kincaid quickly spun around in his desk chair and faced the cardboard boxes that Wilkes had began to snoop around. Now came inventorying the real important things, things no sane Marine would dare deploy without.

The "Pogey Bait."

Kincaid did a mock powerslide over to the boxes. "Bro get your goddamn nose out of there, you know damn well that shit's for the crew, or did your family not ship anything for you?"

Wilkes looked over at Kincaid, his trademark mischievous grin flashing brightly as ever. "Bruh, I was just looking, calm yo ass down. My pops sent me a few things but you know how he is. Old ass nigga can't even remember what damn branch I'm in."

It was true, much like Kincaid Wilkes too came from a broken family, but it had happened when he was very young. He didn't have to really worry about being old enough to know what was going on. As a result, Wilkes grew up with his three brothers and dad. Combined with growing up in downtown Philadelphia it was no wonder the name Rampage had been given to him in the first place.

The two tankers began to inventory the good "Loot" they had acquired over the past few months. Kincaid would call off the item and Wilkes would check it off the list.

"30 cartons of cigarettes?"

"Check."

"Ten cases of Monster and Rockstars?"

"Check a rooni, my dude."

"A damn near half years subscription to...Big Booty Bitches?"

"Yoink! Claimed nigga! Those are gonna decorate the turret walls nicely, oh yeah check!"

"Various fat snacks and tanker num nums?"

Wilkes hid a piece of beef jerky behind him before rogering up. " _Mmph_! Check!"

Raising a curious eyebrow, Kincaid continued going through the list before something absolutely disgraceful caught his eye. "A fucking blowup doll? Dude tell your brothers we don't need this shit!"

He then threw the doll at Wilkes, the latter of which promptly grabbed the doll and tossed it out the window. Evidently someone had seen this as a couple excited cheers soon rang out in response.

With Kincaid's own collection of manga, anime, and various other nerd necessities, everything was in good order. He let out a satisfied sigh before laying down on the carpeted floor and giving his long limbs a good stretch. He paused for a moment and admired the new woodland FROG* suit they were garbed in. At least they were going off in the best attire.

FROG suits beat cammies and CVC* suits by a long shot. Flame retardant and comfortable, they were the new wave of deployment gear for U.S. military and NATO forces going to hostile lands. Kincaid and Wilkes had worn them before, granted they had been in the desert pattern.

After a while, Elton and Benitez arrived to help load the precious cargo and other items onto the Humvee waiting outside, their destination being the motor pool.

As Kincaid left the room to lock it behind them, he looked at himself in the mirror. Adorned in his FROG suit, boonie cover, slung M4, and plate carrier he quickly had a flash back to when he left for Afghanistan. This is what his loved ones had seen before he left for six months, how long would it be before he came back this time?

Shaking his head and brushing off the negative he quickly raced off to join the others downstairs. Cramming into the softback Humvee with the others, they then took off towards the motor pool.

* * *

 **CAMP FUJI MOTOR POOL**

The rest of the morning was quiet, tankers moved to and fro as they began loading up their machines for the journey ahead. Every so often some nervous laughter would follow the occasional yelling of a radio check or other pre operation nuance.

Nobody really knew what to think, the three months up till now had been a blur and there were many who were still flabbergasted over the fact they were actually getting ready to go off into a different world.

As their first deployment no less.

Meanwhile, Kincaid joined the rest of his crew in looking over the new equipment Elton and some others had distributed among the tanks.

New was hardly the world to describe what was laid out in front of them, unusual would've been a better word. As Kincaid and Wilkes finished stowing main gun and machine gun rounds into the various ammo compartments they too got a good look at the strange layout atop the turret.

Most of it was the usual items; DVEs*, thermal binoculars, all the tools they'd need to accomplish their mission. It was the strange weapons atop that caught their attention.

Two AT4s disposable rocket launchers and and a Remington 870MCS shotgun.

Kincaid eyed one of the launchers with a raised eyebrow. "Let me guess, that's for if shit gets too close?"

Elton merely nodded as he made sure both of the launchers were in good order. "Yeah, you remember the big fuckers back at Ginza? Well Commands spooked they're gonna be an issue on the other side."

"And we can't rely on wingmen for that?"

"Shit, stranger things have happened."

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Guess that explains the AT4 course we went through." His gaze shifted over towards the shotgun. "And the shotgun course..."

Elton checked the slide on the shotgun before letting it go back forward with a satisfying clack. "Tank commanders only."

"Wait nigga, you get a shottie and a fucking M4?" Wilkes looked on increduously "That's some bullshit."

Benitez gave a shrug. "Well shotties beat swords any day."

Kincaid nodded in approval he'd had played enough Halo to figure that out.

As the platoon began finalizing preparations, Aldritch yelled at the top of his lungs. "Attention on deck!"

Like an assembly line of robots every Marine there snapped to attention, the MEU commanding officer, Colonel Kane had arrived to oversee his tankers his armored ace in the hole.

Garbed in his MARPAT FROG suit and eight-point cover, he looked relatively young for a Colonel. His black medium fade haircut visible under his cover. He had the face of a charismatic young leader, an uncommon trait among the higher echelons of command.

"At ease Marines, form a school circle around me!."

With a throaty roar, the Marines all gathered around him, some knelt, some stood, but all paid utmost attention.

"Which one of you has a smoke? I've been up day and night trying to coordinate this hogwash with our Japanese friends. Lemme tell ya, they know how to stress an old dog out!"

Everyone began to shuffle around trying to produce tobacco, but it was Kincaid who was quick on the draw. Running to the center, he produced a menthol cigarette and offered it to the commanding officer, lighting it for him as well. With a satisfying puff, a smile spread on Kane's face.

"Now that's what I'm fucking talking about. Thank you, Corporal."

Kincaid merely nodded and returned to the others before Kane took another drag. He was prepping himself for yet another stirring speech.

Typical brass.

"Marines! How are we doing today?!"

Every Marine sounded off at once. "EERRRRRRRR!"

Pleased with the response Kane continued.

"Marines, let me tell you now; I am proud, the Commandant is proud, your Commander in Chief is proud, and more importantly? Your people are proud. Your quick and aggressive response to the attack on our embassy and our Japanese allies is a testament to the Marine Corp's professionalism and strive to excellence, the scared looks on the enemy faces as you drove them back into the gate? That was a nice touch, I won't lie about that."

Some laughter and "Kill"'s spread throughout the platoon's ranks as the Marines responded to this praise. Crushing his cigarette under his boot, Kane continued.

"In a few hours you will be flown off to the mainland to join your brothers, as one you will all proudly march towards the gate alongside the JSDF, this parade is meant to be a symbol of two allies coming together. A testament to our power and indomitable need for justice and freedom. Believe me gentlemen justice will be served for the attack carried out. You will be the spearhead to lead our forces through, you will be the face the enemy will learn to fear every night they close their eyes. The Japanese want our help too, they lost a lot of people Marines. They want answers for what happened and we will be there to help them find those answers one way or another. They don't have the numbers to lead an attack such as this and defend their own territory. That's why we're here, most if not all of their men just experienced their first taste of combat in their own lands. Most of us experienced it in someone else's backyard, they aren't as experienced as we are, but that's okay. Our purpose is to help them here and beyond that gate, no one has any real idea what's beyond, but if there's anyone who knows how to charge into the unknown its U.S. Marines Oorah?"

At once all the Marines responded to this question, their lust for battle clearly evident in their reply.

"Oorah!"

"Damn right, these past three months you have trained and interacted with the Japanese, you know how they do business and they know how we do business. That been said, teach them, work with them, but above all learn from them as they learn from you rah?"

"RAH!" once again every Marine responded the same as before, their Espirit de Corps invoking a strong reaction within.

"These assholes don't have the firepower we have, they don't have the technology we have, and they most certainly don't have the heart we have! You will charge through there and you will kill them, you will make them regret every life they took that day, but don't forget we also have rules."

Kane put his hands behind his back. "Controlled chaos gentlemen, controlled chaos. Shaking hands and kissing babies, no greater friend and no worst enemy. Am I clear?"

Once again he received the answer he was expecting. "Oorah!"

Satisfied, Kane took his leave wishing them best of luck. As he reached his Humvee he turned around. "Now let's show these Japs how to put on a show eh?" With that, he took his leave.

No sooner had Kane left Aldritch clapped his hands together. "Alright Horsemen get these tanks prepped and ready to fucking roll!"

As tankers began to swarm over their machines, the lieutenant chuckled. "Red carpet ain't gonna roll itself out."

* * *

 **1300 HOURS GINZA DISTRICT**

The drive to Tokyo had felt like a long one, owing in no small part to the tanks being part of a massive convoy. Every turn had to be careful ground guided with separate roads being blocked off in order to avoid any potential accidents.

Japanese citizens watched wide eyed as U.S. equipment lumbered by; tanks, trucks and armored vehicles of various types. It had only been three months since the Ginza attack and even now they couldn't quite comprehend seeing such a massive buildup of arms and armor in their own backyard. Some people waved and cheered while others simply stared and shook their heads.

Nothing would ever be the same in Japan after this, possibly the rest of the world too.

Eventually the convoy made its way to the gate in Ginza, the entire district still showing signs of the previous battle even after extensive repairs carried out by Japan and America. What was eerie was the fact that most of the area was almost a ghost town, what little number of civilians remained watched from beyond barricades or paid their respects at a nearby memorial. It wouldn't be until later on that the troops would find out that entire blocks had been effectively cordoned off in order to enact a sort of pseudo DMZ. In conjunction, the gate itself had also been domed and walled off with heavily armored doors. Nobody knew what was coming through the gate next and thus weren't taking any chances with security.

Once the convoy got in place and accountability carried out, the troops went about getting into formation for the inevitable pep talk.

Inevitable in that everyone could see Marine and Japanese top brass accompanying Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the group on a stage complete with a podium. All the troops stood ramrod straight and listened intently as one by one each of the VIPs began their talks, Shinzo Abe being the first.

Well, most of the troops.

 **XXXXXXX**

Itami listened to the Prime Minster alongside his fellow SDF troops and tried his best to keep his focus.

Between the new promotion and fact he was actually deploying, the officer was anything but excited. All he had wanted to do was continue his enlistment in peace and use it to support his hobby. Now here he was fully geared up and getting ready to be sent off to god knew where and to fight god knew what.

At least he wasn't alone and not in front. No that "honor" belonged to the Marines, not that many of the Japanese troops were complaining. The Marines in front meant they'd be the first to be thrown at whatever lay on the other side which made sense given their reputation. Marines known for being thrown at things and crashing right through.

Itami's train of though was interrupted as the Prime Minister began his speech.

"This bill has been adopted thanks to the efforts of officials from all political parties, and now at last we are ready to dispatch our men to the Special Region."

Abe motioned to the other gentlemen that had taken a stand during his speech before continuing.

"However we will not be alone, accompanying us to aid in our endeavors are members of U.S. Marine Corps' Third MEU. Many of these brave men and women were there at ground zero when the enemy first attacked. Their country also lost innocent lives that day but they also aided our people with the same care they gave their own. For that, we are thankful to them and the defense pact we share as nations."

As the speech began to drone off in his ears Itami's eyes began to wander, eventually snapping onto the memorial. It was a simple thing, a few pillars of stone with the engravings of various names. However, wasn't so much the monument that caught his attention, but the ones in front of it.

It was the same girl he had rescued months ago, accompanying her being a man that Itami guessed was her father. The pair stood there their gaze resting on one name in particular, Itami couldn't read the name but he didn't need to.

It was her mother, the girl had come here to pay her respects on the day her country's military went off to avenge her mother's death and many others. Itami steeled himself and took a deep breath. He was worrying so much about his hobbies and simple life being interrupted that he forgot to remember exactly why he was here in the first place, the _real_ reason for his enlistment. Or rather, what the primary reason for his enlistment was **_supposed_ ** to be.

To serve his country and defend his people.

The Marines in front of him had been down this road before, lost brothers to war in far away places and here he was worrying about having to leave his comfort zone. For just a moment Itami felt almost ashamed.

This war would be a chance for change, change within himself.

For better.

Itami gulped.

Or for worse.

 _But I'm still nervous..._

Itami tried to get a grip on the jumble of emotions he was now feeling as the Prime Minister continued.

"The Marines are here to help us in anyway possible, but this is our mission and as such they will be cooperating with us in a more advisory role. Learn from them as they learn from you, we are all in this together as two allies against a common enemy."

Finally the JSDF Commander in charge of the operation, Lieutenant General Hazama, took to the stage and begun addressing his men.

 **XXXXXXX**

As the speeches continued, Elton muttered under his breath just loud enough for Kincaid and Wilkes to hear. Benitez had been in his drivers station passed out and thus was completely oblivious to anything going on.

"Yo I have no idea what either of those two just said."

Kincaid shot Elton a quick glance and rolled his eyes. "Well maybe if you paid attention you'd know they totally just said their speeches again in English."

Elton shook his head for a moment before a moment of dread Nellered his mind. He had totally been spacing off, thinking about his wive and daughter's visit a few weeks ago. Seeing this, Kincaid sighed and began to mutter again. "Basically they said that all the politics are in place and they're like really happy we're here to help them out, oh and that you're a jack-ass."

Wilkes snickered at this remark before Elton shot a snarky reply. "Well I did hear them say that you and that Itami guy like to cosplay with Benitez and pretend you're magicians. Something about how ya'll were losers and fuck each other in the ass?"

Kincaid was about to reach deep into his stash of comebacks before the order to attention was given.

At once every Marine snapped to attention, the sound of boots coming together and rifle drill echoed like thunder throughout the area. The Marine Corps Commandant, General Neller, came to the center stage. It was his turn to give a speech.

 **XXXXXXXX**

"Where are my Devil Dogs? My Hounds? My warriors?" Every Marine sounded off at once. Their combined voices sounded more like a roar than comprehensible English.

"Here sir!"

Chuckling, Neller continued with his speech. "Marines and Sailors, to be quite honest with yall? When I first got the call about this attack? I was about to have the officer who had rang me up court-martialed, well turns out he wasn't wrong and now here we are about to go kick the collective asses of who knows how many fairies and dragons!"

A few low murmurs and a laugh here and there was heard among the ranks, the Commandant must've heard them because he kept talking with more humor in his voice.

"This is a joke! An absolute joke! These amateurs came into a world they knew nothing about, pushed maybe a few miles into the city and then were beaten back by a force that was a fraction of their size! I don't know about y'all, but if some shit like that happened to me? I'd be pretty damn scared, must be why they haven't sent any more men!"

Suddenly he began to get more serious, a large frown growing on his face. He was starting to get angry and into his battle mood. "Whats an even bigger joke? Is that these same 'amateurs 'killed innocent people indiscriminately, this is a testament to their cowardly nature and lack of honor. Well I happen to know of a large group of misfits who have none of the former and plenty of the latter! Where could these misfits be though?"

The Marines knew this game, all at once they said in a loud roar. "Right here sir, is there a problem?!"

Neller, not losing any bearing kept his facial expression and asked the same question again. Again the Marines' answer was the same

"RIGHT HERE SIR, IS THERE A PROBLEM?!"

Meanwhile, the Japanese troops looked at the Marines with shocked expressions. They hadn't expected such aggression during a public event. These men looked like they were about to lose all composure and just charge through the gate in an orgy of war and violence. Yet they stayed like solid stone statues.

Neller, finally having heard the answer he wanted, began to yell into the microphone. His rage could be seen on his face and heard in his voice. "Yeah there is a goddamn problem! Now how do we like to solve problems like this?!"

Like men possessed every Marine including Kincaid and his crew sounded off in a roar. "Kill!"

Neller began to whip them into a frenzy. "Oh I'm sorry come again?"

"Kill!"

"What's that?"

"Kill!"

Finally having amped up his men plenty Neller smiled with satisfaction.

"Make no mistake though Marines, we are trained killers, not barbarians. We will set the example and follow the rules and regulations laid out by the Geneva Convention, we are here because Japan and our people wanted us here and we certainly aim to please, that I can promise. The world is watching you Marines, and more importantly, _**I'm**_ watching you. Don't do anything to discredit our reputation or that of our nation, Colonel Kane is a good leader. Listen to him and you'll all come home safe."

As he said that, Kane had walked up and stood at attention by his side. When all was said and done Neller gave his Marines a crisp salute. It was Kane and Hazama's turn to run the show.

Engines began to start up and men moved into vehicles, hatches were closed and rounds loaded. As the gates slowly opened up, comm checks between both forces began to be exchanged, the order of march was given, and units began to to roger up the chain.

Meanwhile, the tankers of Horsemen platoon sat silent in their vehicles, Aldritch had begun to lead them in prayer and anyone who had happened upon the channel heard it as well. It was motivating as far as prayers went, and many tankers had never heard it before. In fact, had this been any other time they might have even scoffed at it.

But they were nervous, and right now they needed something to fill their hearts with the fire necessary to embark on the journey.

" _I pray thee heavenly father, please hear this tanker's prayer, and send an angel to me, for my tank and crew to care. Be with us when we need you, and lend us a helping hand and safely carry my machine aNeller this barren land. And keep my tank from running dry when the foe is close to me, and place my gunners Neller hairs on the enemy we don't see. Keep our wedge nuts on and tightened and the tension in our track, And be the eyes for our guards at night when we are in the sack. Please keep our radios in shape and commo working right, Be with us when we kneel and pray, Ride with us day and night. Please keep our commo coming, Help us ring out freedom's bell, but above all Heavenly Father see we do our duty well. And if we fall in combat, in the midst of morning gray, we ask for you to accept us these things dear lord we pray._ "

All at once every tanker sounded off with a monotone "Amen".

The preparations were met and it was time, as the gates into the endless darkness of the gate opened up Aldritch came over comm. "Horsemen, move out."

With the tanks leading the charge, allied forces lumbered into the gate and into the unknown. Things were quiet across all nets for a few moments as the light from their world began to replace with a never ending darkness. Soon the tanks spotlights snapped on illuminating an endless sea of darkness as they followed the Humvee towards god knew where.

It was an eerie thing, and the tankers couldn't help but want to shut their hatches and retreat deeper inside their vehicles.

* * *

 **Ambient Album of Awesome**

 **Track 4: Darksouls III "Dancer of the Boreal Valley"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

Kincaid gripped his power control handles tightly with one hand as he fastened his shemagh with the other. Once he was situated he began to bring the gun slowly left and right.

 _I'm not gonna die here, we're gonna be okay. We're gonna be okay._

The sounds of various units came over the net as units began to come over the net.

"Keep your spacing."

"Six watch that angle."

"What angle? There's no fucking angle, it's just endless shit!"

"God look over us."

"Cut the fucking chatter. We're gonna be good Marines."

"Solid I got you on my six. Stay close."

On the other side of the gate the world watched in silence as more and more of the vehicles disappeared into the mouth of darkness. It was an almost breath taking sight, the image of massive armored vehicles fearlessly trudging into the unknown.

The journey had begun.

 **UNKNOWN TIME, GATE TRANSIT TUNNEL, EN ROUTE TO SPECIAL REGION**

The ride had through the tunnel had been anything but eventful. Once the tanks entered the mouth of the gate the rest of the Japanese and Marine armored vehicles fell in behind.

Illuminated only by the headlights of vehicles to their front and rear, the allied forces made their way through the dark void. Thankfully it was a straight shot to the other side, so there was little room for error. No one dared to even test the theory of what lay beyond in the dark expanse to their left and right, but so far no one been whisked away into the void.

At one point during the ride, Elton had even tossed a green chem stick over the right side of the tank. He had seen it had fly quite a ways before hitting a solid surface, but then again he couldn't be sure. He lit a cigarette before leaning over his .50 cal and staring into the void beyond.

Truth be told him and many of the other Marines had actually gotten bored. Once the original track had stopped playing over comm, the Marines began to amuse themselves by telling jokes and playing any songs they hadn't already played before.

Anything they could to break the uneasiness.

Even Kincaid had fallen asleep in his gunner's station and Wilkes had began telling jokes to try and break the monotony. His voice did little to hide how nervous he actually was. "Hey...hey Honcho, I spy with my little eyes...something black."

Rolling his eyes Elton dared to ask what the punchline was. "Oh shit, lemme fucking guess, uh nothing?"

Wilkes laughed in his usual throaty laugh. "Naw, _**you nigguh**_."

Elton threw an empty Monster can at Wilkes's helmet, letting it ricochet off with a satisfying metallic clank before returning to his previous job of looking out for the exit.

Wilkes retreated back into the turret and looked around, all the ammo was secured and Kincaid was fast asleep. To say he was bored was an understatement, and when Wilkes got bored, no one got any peace. He keyed his comm helmet to the rear. "Hey Little John, you doing alright down there? Need anything?"

A moment of silence passed before Benitez responded. "I'm good brother, just bored as fuck. I mean how long is this trip? My ass is starting to hurt and the track's vibrations are making my hands numb."

Wilkes laughed nervously. "Well fuck, how should I know? I ain't never been to another world before."

Wilkes then continued to keep conversation going in order to keep the crew from going insane. The topic went from Afghan war stories to how many girls they had all slept with. Such was the way all Marine conversations went during down time.

Once Kincaid woke up and joined in on the conversation, the net began to be filled with lewd conversations and jokes. Eventually the entire American net was filled with insults and laughter as the different units maneuvered between coordinating their movements and making fun of each other. Once the higher-ups got wind of it, they put the squash on the antics and the net went back to being serious and quiet.

Meanwhile, some of the JSDF had listened in on the Neller talk and they were absolutely convinced they had deployed with savage animals who were going to completely ruin the beautiful opportunity laid out in front of them.

A few naysayers had laughed at the Neller speech and expressed their desire to get to know the Marines better. They were all heading into the unknown and were making light of it, sometimes a little humor was all it took to break the stresses of pre-combat movements.

 **XXXXXXX**

Listening to the exchange over the net Itami had sighed and adjusted uncomfortably in his seat. The rest of his squad was fast asleep, except for his good friend and comrade Sergeant Takeo Kurata.

"Hey Itami, think we'll see any cute Neko girls on the other side? I mean we've already seen dragons and monsters, it only makes sense!"

Itami adjusted his helmet and Type 64 rifle before responding to his friend. "Can't say I would complain if we did, but I get a feeling the Marines will scare them all away."

 _Well...not all of them_ , Itami thought to himself. Benitez and Kincaid were probably asking each other the same questions, being fellow Otakus like Kurata and himself they had to be just as curious.

Suddenly a voice came over all the comm channels. "All vics, this is Horsemen One, be advised we have eyes on a light at the end of the tunnel. Look sharp people."

At this remark everyone began to wake up, the boredom had been broken and units began to roger up. It was show time.

Itami racked a round into the chamber for his rifle and fastened his helmet tighter. Doing a last minute look over at his squad he relaxed a little. They were ready.

* * *

 **0530 HOURS, OVERWATCH POSTION OVERLOOKING ALNUS HILL, SPECIAL REGION**

Recker's team heard the sound of tracks and heavy machinery long before they saw the source. Overlooking the mouth of the gate and the large fields beyond, they had been in a forward overwatch position.

They were there to be the forward operating eyes and ears for the allied forces upon their arrival. Having been in the field for a week they were just as alert now as they had been when they first inserted into the Special Region.

During this time they had been carrying out disruption operations against enemy supply lines, as well as mapping out terrain and sending the information back to the other side. These operations had been nothing short of invaluable in aiding allied forces planning of the invasion.

They weren't alone however, accompanying Recker's five man team was a team of JSDF commandos. Though they had been "green" upon entering the gate. They had certainly lost that title not long after, their assistance had been a key asset in operations carried out.

In Recker's eyes they were just as much a part of his team as any other SEAL, and that respect was mutual between the two teams. As the allied forces established themselves and began entrenching, Recker sent up the intel gathered during their occupation in the Special Region.

"Overlord this is Phantom, we have eyes on friendly forces, be advised large enemy presence north of your POS, enemy force estimated to be at least division strength or greater over."

"Phantom this is Overlord, solid copy on your last, hold your current position and mark HVT's for elimination break, when fifty percent of enemy strength has been eliminated tanks and APCs will move forward to secure forward defensive position in order for FOB construction to be carried out by engineers. How copy?"

"Overlord this is Phantom, solid copy on all, give em hell."

Both special forces teams hadn't been tasked to leave the AO and although static defense wasn't in their M.O., they figured it best to just hunker down and aid in the defense. It just so happened they were packing some FGM-172 Javelins along with a few stingers.

Though cumbersome, these weapon systems had been invaluable in deterring enemy assets. The Javelin's pinpoint top attack accuracy was the bane of any large ground based targets. The Stingers were merely insurance against dragons.

No one wanted to be on the receiving end of one of those.

As the allied forces began to dig in, Recker's men began setting up the Javelins and Stingers, meanwhile, the SOG commandos did the same with their LAMs*. Though not as accurate as the Javelins, the unguided rocket launchers had been just as effective against heavy targets.

As the two teams began to set up one of Recker's demolition men, Lieutenant Lentz, began to lighten the mood. "So after a week of us kicking their collective asses, they still want to play? Jesus they just don't learn."

As Recker sighted into his Javelin's CLU unit, he muttered back to Lentz, not breaking his line of sight with the enemy. "Well they certainly have the numbers, they must think they can just overwhelm us, and with the constant reinforcements they've been getting can you blame them? When in doubt throw more men at it."

The truth was that in a modern battlefield, the idea of "throwing" more men into the proverbial meat grinder was anything but a smart idea. With advancements in multi target weapon systems and accurate ballistics, a commander had use his assets and men with a great deal more caution.

Swarm tactics were suicide, especially against a military that had trained to fight Soviet doctrine for years.

Of course the current enemy didn't even know what modern weaponry or tactics were. As far as they were concerned, up till now they had been fighting some rogue coven of mages or some new breed of creature.

They weren't wrong about creatures, both special forces teams had been operating in hellish conditions and fighting a numerically superior foe with just as much tenacity as a whole army.

It was just another day at the farm for them, fantasy world or not.

 **XXXXXXX**

There had been a moment of silence when the first allied vehicles emerged from the gate, mouths hung open as thermal sights traversed every which way. Large sloping fields of green as far as the eyes could see, mountains in the distance becoming visible in the dawn's slowly rising light. GPS navigational units began to static as irritated commanders tried their best to make heads or tales of where they were. Eager and nervous troops looked out of vehicle windows as they strained themselves to take in the sights all around them

Both forces were well and truly in a different world now. No time to gawk for long however, as a large horde began to take shape over the horizon.

It was the enemy, back to business.

Allied forces began to dig in; men dismounted from armored personnel carriers, emplaced weapon systems were set up, short range UAV drones were sent up, mobile artillery began to elevate their guns and fighting vehicles prowled like big cats into defensive positions.

All of the allies' weapon systems were orientated towards the massive enemy force ahead. If the enemy were bold enough to attack, they'd kicking over one hell of a proverbial hornet's nest.

Itami dismounted from his Humvee watching the scene unfold, it was nothing short of impressive in his eyes. Two countries uniting against one enemy, outnumbered no less. It would be a story to be told for generations.

As he made his way around the defenses with his squad he chanced upon a familiar face, it was the Marine lieutenant he had met at the Imperial Palace. He was yelling to his men as they set up a MK-19 grenade launcher.

Itami and his squad approached him and began setting up next to him. "Van Hauser! Good to see you, mind if we set up here?"

The German Marine turned towards the source of the familiar voice, though his voice was cheerful, the skull faced balaclava he wore certainly wasn't. Itami had seen this look before in various operator magazines and websites. Yet he was still nothing but confused as to why he was seeing it here of all places.

" _Guten Tag!,_ the more the merrier. You can get front row seats to the ass kicking that's about to go down."

As the two squads began to set up sandbags Itami looked towards the enemy force. Torches could be seen lit at various intervals, lighting up the faces of enemy soldiers and other foul beasts. Itami swore could almost hear them preparing themselves for the battle ahead.

Suddenly large thumps began to ring out.

Mortar teams had begun launching illumination rounds, the sight they exposed was like something out of a medieval fantasy. A wave of enemy forces could be seen clear as day, there had to be thousands of them.

As soon as this was done a loud war horn from the enemy's side could be heard, they were commencing their attack.

 _"_ Alright boys this is it, we are green and very very mean Lets show these amateurs how men fight!"

Yells and chest thumps rang out as the Marines got into position, they lived for moments like this. An organization born in a tavern, created for the sole purpose of winning wars anytime, anywhere.

As Van Hauser yelled to his men, Itami got behind the sandbags. For a moment he couldn't help but feel envious of the Marines. Unlike the Japanese, they had optics on their standard issue rifles. Iron sights weren't helping the Lieutenant's situation right now, even with the illumination rounds.

His train of thought was broken as he glanced off down the line, sure enough he saw them.

The Abrams tanks and they looked like they were ready for war.

 **XXXXXXX**

"Jesus that's a lot..."

Inside _Here We Go Again_ , there was a lot of commotion as the crew began going through pre combat checks.

Kincaid began to laze targets, acquiring ranges and ballistic solutions. Wilkes set up safety guards and turned the radio stations to monitor all firing frequencies, he moved with the haste of a trained professional. Elton monitored comm as he scanned the horizon with his tank commander's independent thermal sight. Finally last, but certainly not least, Benitez sat quietly and merely waited for the next order to drive forward. For now there was nothing he could besides keep the tank parked and wait for an order to move out. As he looked through his DVE he too could see the large thermal mass of the enemy begin to move forward.

Suddenly aNeller the net orders began to relay from the higher ups, crews inside each tank began to take note of the orders and got set up in their stations.

"All Horsemen vehicles this is Overlord standby for FRAGO, large division sized enemy force spotted at our immediate twelve break, enemy is comprised of foot soldiers supported by large humanoid targets and winged assets break. Your orders are to set up in the defense and repel enemy attack, upon neutralization of half the enemy force you are to push forward approximately 300 meters and push the enemy back with support from Rhino platoon's LAVs and infantry break. Once that is accomplished you are to set up in the defense in order for combat engineers to begin FOB construction, sound off when you copy my last over."

One by one every tank commander sounded off.

"Overlord this is Horsemen One Lima Charlie over."

"Overlord this is Horsemen Two , Lima Charlie over."

"Overlord this is Horsemen Three, Lima Charlie over."

"Overlord this is Horsemen Four, Lima Charlie over."

"Solid copy Horsemen, when the enemy breaks the 900 meter firing line you are cleared to engage, Overlord out."

Elton began to command his tank with the efficiency of a well versed leader, ringing off commands to each crew member.

"Four Eyes index HEAT and start lazing targets, Rampage you know what to do, Little John stay comfortable down there and don't fall asleep." Each crew member sounded off one by one as they acknowledged his orders.

Kincaid sighted in and indexed the gun the gun for HEAT, as he lazed the mass of troops he began to countdown the ranges.

"906 meters, 905 meters, 903 meters."

Wilkes armed the gun with a satisfying clunk. "Up!"

Then Elton and Kincaid began to fall into fire commands. "Contact! Enemy infantry in the open!"

"Identified! Range 900 meters and closing!"

"Fire!"

"On the way!"

The tank rocked back as its main gun sent its deadly payload down range, Kincaid watched with a smirk as it impacted a troop formation, sending thermal body parts and men scattering. Meanwhile, the breech dropped and the base cap of the round ejected onto the turret floor as Elton and Kincaid went through the commands.

"Fucking target. Hey, get me a sabot one of those big bastards is moving up."

Once again the fire commands fell into place as the crew moved with a fluidity honed from months of training.

"Gun right! Steady! Contact, ogre!"

"Identified! Range 876!"

Another round could be heard being loaded into the breech. "Up!"

"Fire!"

"On the way!"

 **XXXXXXX**

The Sabot round is an armored piercing fin stabilized discarding sabot with tracer, in a world of composite armor it's been the mainstay of most modern main battle tanks when it comes to defeating enemy armor. The one utilized by the U.S., the M829A3, contains a depleted uranium dart and just so happens to be fired by a highly modified version of the German Rhinemetall L44 smooth bore main gun.

One of the deadliest rounds being fired by one of the most successful mainguns in service with most armies. It went without saying that the ogre that had been chosen as Kincaid's target had had a less than stellar time.

Its head had been cleaved clean off and turned into a red mist by the high velocity round, meanwhile, its fellows and the foot soldiers beneath it began to panic. Fireballs had appeared from nowhere and began to destroy whole legions of men.

Meanwhile, red sparks came danced through the air towards them, punching through shields and cutting men in half. The troops began to lose their nerve, what foul magic was this? What mages commanded such arcane destructive force?

Their dragons were chased by white ghosts that spun through the air and followed them no matter what maneuvers they made. Whenever one of the ghosts touched one of the dragons, a large spark was made and gore began to rain down on those below, the corpse of dragon and rider following soon after.

Their commander looked on in shock, this was a massacre. All he could see from beyond the ridge was lightning and ghosts coming towards his men, they had faced many foes and beasts, but none commanded such destructive power. What kind of creatures came from beyond the gate?

Whole waves of veterans were chewed up and spat out by the fireballs and sparks, no amount of dodging or hiding spared the men from their wrath. Meanwhile, ogres fell atop men beneath them their size and strength no match against such an onslaught.

Finally the commander looked up towards the ridge, he could see light reflecting off some sort of mirror for but a second. That was the last thing he saw before his head exploded like a ripe melon. The army, leaderless, began to fall like wheat before the scythe.

 **XXXXXXX**

Meanwhile, atop the overwatch position Recker watched an enemy commander's head explode. A well placed shot from the Japanese commandos. Knowing a good shot when he saw one, he gave props to the soldier who had made the shot.

"Heh, good shot bro."

Without turning his face away from the scope, the commando in question did a thumbs up and went on with his business.

Recker watched as the carnage unfold; missiles streaked through the sky and into ranks of men and ogres, dragons torn apart mid flight from JSDF Type 87 anti aircraft cannon fire. Meanwhile, Coalition tanks sent forth red blobs of death and tracers, destroying anything in front of them.

He smiled before sighting another ogre makings its way dangerously close to the defensive line.

That was a big no no.

"Fuck! Hey Mendez load me up!"

"On it!"

In minutes Recker picked up his Javelin's CLU sighting system off the ground, wiping away some dirt off the lens before bringing it up to his eyes. As he sighted his target, he felt a heavy shift and heard a click to his right as a missile was sealed on.

"You're good!" Recker's subordinate gave him a pat on the back before making his way back to his spot, giving the lieutenant enough room for the backblast.

He gave the system a few seconds to lock the charging beast before taking a deep breathe.

"Backblast clear!"

Another voice promptly responded. "Clear!"

"Firing!"

Recker depressed the triggers on the CLU before a loud pop followed by a puff of smoke obscured his vision. Off the missile went, and no matter how many times he'd seen this the lieutenant couldn't help but watch in awe.

Javelins were considered probably the most dangerous ATGM on the modern battlefield. Designed to live up to their name, the missiles traveled up in an arc before slamming down on their target. Many surmised that not even modern NATO tanks could survive the top attack profile and others were pretty sure there wasn't a hard or soft kill countermeasure system that could effectively stop one.

Not yet anyways.

Regardless, ogres had neither tank armor or countermeasures. So when the missile slammed down on the bewildered beast, the result was satisfactory to say the least. There wasn't anything left, but Recker was certain he'd seen limbs fly off every which way.

"Target down."

Recker promptly dropped heavy AT system to the ground before scooping his SCAR up and going back to work.

 **XXXXXXX**

After an hour of killing just about everything downrange, Kincaid and many other tankers had actually began to get tired. It was a monotonous turkey shoot, the enemy couldn't fight back. Their support was dropping left and right and they still hadn't made any progress towards the defensive line. At one point fire commands ceased being given out and the tankers began to just engage targets with the proper weapon systems.

It was about as impersonal as war could get.

The only real worry was running out of ammo, even then that still wasn't that much of a problem. Everyone had stockpiled more than the required amount of ammo. Kincaid switched his sights from five to ten power magnification as he relentlessly gunned down troops and destroyed hard targets, the tank turret interior began to reek of smoke and became cloudy from repeated weapons use.

Kincaid lit a cigarette as he continued to destroy the enemy, by this point he was ready to just charge forward. As he did so he began to talk to himself over internal comm.

"Fuckers just keep coming man."

"Dog they gotta stop eventually." Wilkes groaned as he manned his 240 and began sending rounds downrange as well. Typically the loader's 240 was a weapon of last resort. Unstablized and intended to be an instrument of suppression rather than attack, it was still **_fun_** to shoot. A fact not lost on the loader as he sprayed rounds at the enemy.

Elton responded to Wilkes complaint. "Yeah, they do." The tank commander let off another burst from his .50 before opening his hatch slightly to the open protected position. As the sounds of chaos echoed all around him the slightly shaken tank commander lit a cigarette taking a few drags before passing it between his gunner and loader.

It was a simple yet comforting thing. The nicotine had proven itself time and time again to be an ample source of calm when shit hit the fan. The crew within the turret didn't get long to savor the moment however as soon the net was filled with orders.

"All Horsemen tanks, be advised prior mission criteria has been met. Push Push Push!"

At this command the tanks began to lumber forward their weapons continuing to pour fire at the enemy as Aldritch began barking orders from his tank.

"All tanks form a line! I want good speed and dispersion! If you bite off more than you can chew let someone know! Check your flanks too, we got infantry and LAVs moving up."

All the tank commanders rogered up the net at once and in moments the four tanks began to lumber forward, accompanying LAVs and AAVs filling any gaps in the line as infantry began to pour out of them.

Meanwhile back at the defensive line the Japanese and other Marine forces held their fires so as not to hit the charging vehicles and infantry. The only coverage being provided at this point coming from anti air systems.

As the Marines began to go on the offensive, the enemy line began to falter. They had started to retreat.

 **XXXXXXXX**

Galt Augustus had taken command shortly after his previous commander had fallen in battle, to say he was trying to salvage a hopeless situation was an understatement. His men were at half their original strength, an army formed from different nations and creatures destroyed in a matter of hours.

All he could do now was order his men to run, an order they clearly had been waiting for as it wasn't met with any hesitation.

So run they did, the commander occasionally stopping to glance over his shoulder out of morbid curiosity.

Large iron beasts had began to roll forward, they had no legs and like the mages from before they too spewed death, only of a much worse kind. Some had large square heads with one eye and a large snout. Others were smaller and had strange wheels for feet on them.

All of them were equally deadly.

The smaller ones had even been disgorging strange looking men who carried sticks that shot thunder these too were no less dangerous than their bigger fellows.

What was strange though, was the way this foreign enemy fought.

The steel beasts would push forward a ways and stop to unleash their hatred and would remain stationary while, the infantry got up from their positions on the ground and charged forward. Once the infantry pushed forward and met up with the beasts they would immediately drop to the deck and continue adding to the carnage.

Whatever strange tactic it was, it worked.

Any friendly forces who tried to fight this onslaught faced a fate worse than death, the iron beasts would trample them over and crush them beneath their moving feet. Some had been crushed from the feet up and had their insides forcefully pushed outwards. Ogres were destroyed piecemeal and trampled over with almost the same impunity as the normal soldiers.

Haphazard shield walls were hastily created to try and buy allies time to escape, only to falter almost immediately once they were punched through by the enemy's magic.

Galt filled his lungs with air as he continued to run, pushing anyone out of his way and carelessly trampling those who couldn't move. He had to get out of there, warn those who hadn't arrived yet of the danger here.

The futility of fighting.

It was an opportunity he wouldn't get. Suddenly a sharp stabbing pain bit into the commander's leg causing him to cry out as he hit the soft cool grass. Whatever had hit him had punched a clean hole right through, rendering his leg useless.

He couldn't run and the wall of death was getting closer.

The young commander rolled onto his back gazing up at the sky as the dark sky began to be replaced with a dull blue. As he lay there he wondered about his family, his home, how the Empire would more than likely abandon them all in order to save itself. A small tear began to well up into his eye as he though about it all.

He had been an honest warrior, a man who fought for his home and never without good cause. At least, up till now.

The enemy had came from beyond Alnus, beyond the gate. Something had brought them here and quite some time after proper Imperial forces had initially went through and came back in tatters.

They attacked with an unbridled fury, like as if they were out for **_revenge_**. The Empire had kicked many hornet's nests over during its time in power, Galt knew this being a part of a Vassal state's army. Whatever hornet's nest this strange army was from however had stung far worse than any other before it.

The new army wasn't the enemy, the Empire was and it had sent Galt and his fellow troops to die in order to keep it at bay.

"To die for a foolish cause and to leave my family behind for it. There can be no greater shame." Galt sighed and muttered to himself as the cacophony of death got closer, thinking of his home and family once more as he continued to look at the morning sky.

"I'm sorry."

Then, it all stopped. The screaming, the thunder, the killing. All of it just stopped, like as if someone had thrown a lever and called a cease to it. The young commander winced in pain as he tried to sit upright, pausing to look around as he tried to figure out what was going on.

The enemy line had paused in place its strange infantry beginning to move all about the place as they began to approach the dead and dieing to do gods knew what. Meanwhile, the large beasts sat in place as their heads slowly moved left and right.

"United States Marines! Drop weapon, place hands in air!"

Galt's train of thought was immediately cut off as a voice called out to him in a broken version of his own language. As the commander looked towards the source of the voice, his heart almost stopped.

Four enemy soldiers had begun advancing towards him, their strange weapons aimed at him as they made their way closer. That's wasn't what had surprised him however.

It was the age of the soldiers, almost all of them were half his age with the exception of their grizzled face leader who called out to him once more.

"United States Marines! Drop weapon, place hands in air!"

So he was to be a prisoner, no doubt interrogated and discarded once they were done with him. Galt had heard the stories, seen it firsthand.

That was not how he wanted to go out, but before he could even think to reach for his sword he glanced back at his men to see if they would join him.

They hadn't and for good reason, the strange foreign soldiers had began to treat their wounds. Noticing this, one of the soldiers called out to Galt once more. "Cooperate! We treat your wounds and wounded! No point to continue fighting!"

Galt suddenly felt a mixture of emotions, confusion being chief among them right alongside the growing feeling of exhaustion as he felt his mind grow heavy. As the commander fell back to the grass and began to lose consciousness, he heard the soldiers begin running to him.

Nothing would ever be the same from here on, but at least he would live to see another day.

See his family maybe.

* * *

 **FOUR DAYS SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 1000 HOURS, ALNUS HILL, SPECIAL REGION**

Even after the tanks had pushed forward, the enemy would return in force a few more times, each time they were wiped out. Whoever had sent these men forward had willingly sent them to their doom. For days they were repelled again and again.

No sane leader would dare make the same mistake twice after losing so many of his number, it was suicide.

"Perhaps the lives of soldiers aren't valued so highly here". Itami thought as he and Kurata made their way through the twisted and blackened landscape. As they progressed further they could make out large square objects on the horizon, no doubt the Marine tanks and their LAV companions.

The stench of death was rife and many of the mercy killing teams that were dispatched had to wear gasmasks just to cope with the hellish conditions. The ending calculations for enemy deaths was 120,000, but it was very likely the number was higher than that.

As the two Japanese troops continued through the killing fields, a sound began to grow.

Music?

As they got closer they could see a refueling truck going to each vehicle, topping off their fluid levels and making sure they were stocked for any missions coming up. Marines could be seen laughing as they worked on their tanks.

They were **_laughing_** , they had helped kill 120,000 and they were **_laughing_**. As the tankers worked on their vehicles, gunshots could be heard. Marine and Japanese teams carried out mercy killings as well as helped out any wounded they could find.

Though the former outnumbered the latter greatly.

As Itami and his comrades walked among the Marines, the music they had heard earlier finally took the form of a loud rock song being blasted from a speaker on one of the tanks.

* * *

 **Wilkes Album of Awesome**

 **Track 5: Radiohead "Creep"  
**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

The Japanese soldiers walked up to the tank that was blasting the music in question, it was Kincaid's crew. Smoking and talking up a storm, they tended to their tank.

 _"You float like a feather"_

As Elton fixed his .50 cal, he stopped and read from a scroll in a loud voice a large ornate helmet on his head. "Hear ye hear ye, yall got your asses kicked! So says I Lord Ass Kickus. Fucking shitheads."

He then tossed the scroll away and went back to tending to his weapon.

Meanwhile, Kincaid sat atop the front of the turret straddling the gun mantle, on his back an elaborate pelt hung from his shoulders. He took a drag from his cigarette as he rested the side of his face on his fist.

"Jesus if they keep fighting us like this this war will be over in few days."

Meanwhile, the other two tankers were conversing at the front of the tank adjusting the volume on the speaker as they talked. They both had their helmets off and were wearing boonie covers.

As Itami and his men approached, Kincaid noticed them as he raised an eyebrow. "Sir, good to see you. Hey quick heads up, I don't recommend looking at the tracks."

 _"In a beautiful world"_

"What, why?"

No sooner had Itami asked, his gaze slowly made its way to the bottom of the tank before freezing. He hadn't looked for more than a few minutes before emptying his stomach on the ground, heaving for a few seconds and loud enough for the entire tank crew to notice.

 _"And I wish I was special"_

Parts, body parts. Flesh, mud, steel, wood and rubber all mulched together in one gruesome collage.

Kincaid let some smoke out of his nose before shaking his head. "Sir, respectfully. I did tell you not to look at the tracks."

 _"You're so fuckin' special"_

Kurata tended to his superior for a few moments before his eyes darted at the gruesome sight and back at the tankers.

"Jesus, w-what? What the hell happened?"

Elton took off his captured helmet and set it down before sighing. "War Staff Sergeant, stupid war. But war none the less, dumbasses wouldn't move and kept charging us."

He paused before looking at a grim faced Benitez and shaking his head. The driver, much like the rest of the crew, had dark stains all over sleeves.

"That's after hours of us trying to pick shit out too. We tried to do track work but uh, as you can see." Elton paused before lighting up a cigarette. "Some messes are just too hard to clean."

Itami finally composed himself, taking a deep breath before wiping his forehead with a dirty sleeve. "Are you just gonna leave it like this?"

"It'll all fall out, or get crushed. It didn't stop us while it was all still moving, don't see why it'll stop us now."

Both of the Japanese troops stood there dumbfounded for a few moments. The sheer ignorance of it all baffled them, what foul manner of training prevented a man from batting an eye at the sight of all of this? They were playing music and waiting to be refueled like nothing had happened.

In the middle of a corpse filled, stinking landscape.

What kind of men were these?

 _"But I'm a creep, I'm a weirdo"_

"Sir? You good? You need a cigarette or something?" Wilkes made his way over towards the two stricken Japanese troops, a look of confusion on his face.

 _ **Confusion**_ , like the weird ones here were Itami and Kurata for being bothered by all this.

 _"What the hell am I doing here?"_

Itami merely raised a hand and shook his head. "No, thank you though. Wilkes was it?"

The loader nodded before slapping the front of his plate carrier. "Yessir, though some people call me Rampage."

"Or dickhead." Kincaid muttered from atop the tank as he began flipping the pages through a manga, a Monster sitting in his non dominant hand.

"Bitch, I'll slap the dog shit outta you." Wilkes glared at his gunner before turning to the Japanese troops and chuckling. "But yeah, that too sometimes."

Both of the Japanese troops merely smiled nervously before Itami sighed. "Well, we'll uh. Be on our way now."

Kincaid paused from his book as he looked over at the officer. "You sure? We got some keepsakes here. Swords? Helmets?"

"No that'll be all. Thank you Corporal."

With that, the two Japanese troops took their leave and made their way back to their temporary camp.

"Sir? Those Marines." Kurata glanced back nervously at the tanks. "Are you sure they're, okay?"

Itami kept his gaze forward towards their destination. Ignoring the occasional odd crunch beneath his boots. "Would you believe me if I told you they're almost like us?"

"They are?" Kurata's face twisted into a look of disbelief? "All of them?"

"No just Kincaid and Benitez."

"Benitez?"

"Yeah, the short Hispanic one who didn't say anything."

"So, they're Otakus?"

Itami shrugged, adjusting the sling for his rifle as the pair continued. "More or less, though I think they just like anime and manga."

The Japanese Sergeant shrugged. "As good as that is, I find that hard to believe."

"I thought the same thing at first." Itami glanced back at the tanks one last time. "They've seen war Kurata, real war. They're good men though."

Kurata raised an eyebrow as his superior paused. "But?"

"They're just _**different**_."

 _And we will be too when this all over._

 _"I don't belong here"_


	8. We Came, We Saw, We Shook Hands

**Chapter 6: We Came, We Saw, We Shook Hands and Kissed Babies?**

 _"WARRIORS BY DAY, LOVERS BY NIGHT, PROFESSIONALS BY CHOICE, AND MARINES BY THE GRACE OF GOD."_

Common motivational quote used by Marines.

 **THREE WEEKS SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 0700 HOURS, ALNUS HILL, SPECIAL REGION**

The following weeks after initial contact with the enemy were nothing short of mundane once the battles stopped. Many troops found themselves being posted on menial duties and carrying out less than stellar tasks once FOB construction began.

FOB was an understatement however, as what started off as some tents and makeshift motor pools began to take shape into something much greater. Day and night materials were brought in from Japan on flatbed trucks or massive tractors. Prefabs, concrete, HESCO* barriers, building material of all sorts. It was almost frightening how fast the engineers had been working.

Over time a star shaped fortress of sorts began to take form. The logic was that such a shape provided equal protection on all fronts, something the coalition needed in order to properly stave off future attacks.

Not that the enemy had dared try to attack anymore not after one last final massacre that had only occurred but a few nights prior.

It had been a pretty normal affair up till then, the enemy would attack and get pushed back, rinse and repeat. This time however, a living legend had been born that night or rather a topic of a great many jokes. On the final night of the attacks the enemy had once again tried to conduct a sneak attack, sneaking was relative however as they had simply brought a much smaller force and tried to attack during one of the darkest nights.

Of course the enemy obviously still had no idea the coalition had their hands on top of the line night vision optics. In the enemy's world night raids were an effective and proven way of attacking the enemy. Back on Earth and in a world of modern warfare however, night raids were considered a fact of life and a nuisance easily prevented with good judgement and situational awareness.

So naturally something terrible was bound to happen and it did every time the enemy tried to attack in such a way. This night had been different however, and in its own special way.

On this final night the enemy was once again revealed by illumination rounds and once again attacked head on and cut apart. It was the one leading the attack however, _**that**_ had been the topic of discussion among the troops.

Leading the charge was a very gruff looking general. Distinguished by his eye patch ornate armor, and horse mount, he had personally led the charge alone. It was all for naught however. As soon as he had personally made his way to the barbed wire defensive line, his horse was immediately incapacitated with him being thrown off and over the wire itself.

That had been strike one.

Strike two had been when his soldiers came to his rescue and were immediately gunned down while still holding their shields. The coalition gave the enemy credit however, some forces still had problems with barbed wire even in the modern world.

As the general's forces were decimated he then made his way forward a few meters, picked up a bow and had actually launched an arrow at the oncoming weapons fire. This very same arrow was still embedded in Kincaid's backpack, the backpack in question having been in the storage rack behind the turret.

It just so happened that in that backpack was one of Kincaid's prized energy drinks, one that had just so happened to get hit and punctured.

 ** _That_** had been strike three, and as the general laughed at the futility of his attack he was promptly vaporized by a HEAT round courtesy of _Here We Go Again._

It was worth mentioning that during all of this the general had not once been hit by the overwhelming firepower being directed at his forces. There were even rumors he might've even survived the HEAT round itself, not a trace of his body had been found so far.

The only reason this had even been a story at all was because Kincaid and his crew had watched it all happen through their tank's sight system. The only person who had the last laugh was Kincaid however as he sent one of his own "arrows" right back.

Thus the General in question began acquiring all sorts of nicknames, the most prolific being General Goofball or General "Gotcha Kincaid".

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he felt the arrow shaft tap the back of his head for what must've been the hundredth time. His pack had been behind his cot and propped against the side of the tent his platoon was using as a temporary quarters. All night it reminded him of the event every time he went to shift his head, by now the sun had risen however and a small beam of light was starting to shine through the tent's entrance.

Which meant Kincaid wasn't getting anymore sleep.

Wiping the sleep from his eyes and donning his glasses, Kincaid sat upright from his sleeping bag atop his cot as he scratched his bare chest. The sounds of multiple Marines snoring had formed a sort of chorus of noise that made his ears ring. Coupled with the smell of tank and men in various states of cleanliness, the situation hardly made for a pleasant wake up.

Thankfully Reveille hadn't been sounded yet, which meant there was likely still some time before the platoon actually had to wake up.

 _Might as well go for a fucking run._

Kincaid grimaced at the sight of Wilkes's cot next to him. The heavyset loader was snoring loudly, occasionally mumbling some incoherent gibberish before shifting around some more.

Out like a light.

With great care and caution Kincaid reached behind his cot and into his Illbe pack, rummaging around for a few moments before fetching some basic running shorts. Once those were on and a pair of running shoes to go with them, he then fetched his Ipod Nano and headphones out of his assault pack and made his way out of the tent and into the lukewarm Special Region morning air.

Kincaid yawned before stretching as he gazed around the motor pool, his back giving a satisfying crack in response. It was about as bare bones as a motorpool could get. To the right of the tent sat the four tanks and their M88, one of the tankers slowly walking back and forth in front of them as he stood duty. Past that, there wasn't much else.

Save for the Japanese tanks right across and in another section of the lot, some genius had thought it would be a great idea to put to fundamentally different groups of armored crewman in the same area.

As Kincaid began to put his headphones on he paused before glancing at the Marine on duty. A short stocky Texan named Reeves he was the driver for Aldritch's tank and the resident historian, retro junkie and chef for the platoon. He was also one of the older Marines in the platoon at the age of twenty-eight. As a historian it almost went without saying he had a wealth of theories and questions over all the pseudo Roman things the Coalition had encountered up till now and his ramblings had been both a source of entertainment for the platoon as well as a source of irritation when he went on for too long.

There was also a running gag that he looked the same as Kincaid and many people outside the platoon had actually thought the two were brothers. Kincaid made his way over to the Texan, the shorter Marine fixing his coyote brown beanie before hopping off the front slope of his tank and looking at Kincaid with a tired smile.

"You're up early."

"I'm going for a run."

Reeves raised a thick eyebrow and fixed his glasses before adjusting the sling for his M4. "I thought you hated running."

"I do."

"So why are you going?"

"Cause I'm bored and I can't sleep. Just make sure you let the others know I'm gone."

"Nobody wants to see your ugly ass this early bro."

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Bruh shut your Mr. Potato head having ass up and go back to tending to your shitty memes. Better yet go back to listening to your eighties shit some more."

Reeves and Kincaid also had the sort of friendship only Marines well versed in being geeks could have.

"The eighties were the golden years, something your troll looking ass wouldn't understand. Besides you listen to eighties shit too."

Kincaid frowned before shaking his head. "Look man just tell em I'm gone."

"I'll tell them you ran away."

"Kiss my ass, don't talk to me or my dudes ever again."

The pair laughed before Kincaid slipped his earphones on and scrolled through his Ipod's workout playlist. Once he found a song he pressed play and slipped his Ipod back into his shorts' pocket and took off down the base's winding paths.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 6: Pigeon John "The Bomb"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

" _Wait, wake up in the morning to the clear blue sky_  
 _Turn up the music when I hop in the ride_  
 _The windows down let the whole world see_  
 _Can't nobody rock it like the little old me._ "

Kincaid huffed and puffed as he made his way through the base, paying close attention to avoid higher ups and dodge around troops returning from guard post. He also made sure to wave at any cute female troops he saw, which was of course met with mixed reactions.

"I _got my chucks and my dickies and I put it on black_  
 _Banging Sinatra in the black Cadillac_  
 _My old lady leaning out the whole window_  
 _Everybody lookin' when we walk in_ slow."

As he went to turn past some storage containers he saw a familiar figure running ahead, it was Itami. Kincaid smiled as he went to catch up, Itami's pace was slow and methodical, his bushy hair flew around as he jogged in his JSDF physical attire.

Finally catching up Kincaid went to talk to his old friend between breathes. "Hey sir! Fancy seeing you here, wonderful Special Region morning we're having huh?"

Itami didn't even bat an eye as he continued jogging. Kincaid deduced he must've not heard him and began to run backwards in circles around Itami.

"Heloooooo? Sir?"

Finally Itami noticed and slowed his pace down even more as he addressed his friend between breathes. "Oh hey Kincaid, yeah I guess its wonderful. For now anyways."

"For now? Whadya mean?"

Kincaid began to slow down to a fast walk, one of his bushy eyebrows slowly raising in question. Itami stopped too and began to walk fast as he continued to deliver the news.

"Well, it looks like we have a mission today, your XO and my higher ups were up last night drafting it up. Apparently we're going to go recon the area and meet the local populace." As the two rounded a corner past some parked Humvees, Kincaid's expression changed to shock.

"Whoah, whoah. Wait, **_recon_**? With **_tanks_**? What the **_hell_**?"

Kincaid was no stranger to sudden missions. A life of quick reaction force drills and missions in Afghan taught him to be prepared for them, but the words coming out of Itami's mouth were as alien as the language spoken in the Special Region.

Recon was one thing, but using tanks to do it? That was **_not_** in their M.O. Search and destroy missions? Sure. Overwatch missions? Sure, but Recon with winning hearts and minds thrown in? **_That_** was a big negative. Tanks were hardly the tool make friends with.

As Itami sighed and put his hands behind his head, he went into detail. "Look I'm no fan of it myself, hell I have to lead a team, but apparently the brass don't want us leaving the wire without good fire support and until the air assets start getting shipped in? Well your platoon's name has spoken for itself. Besides our tanks are being regulated to defense, the crews don't have experience in operating in an environment such as this."

It was true, in fact since the make shift motor pool was shared by both Marine and JSDF tankers there had always been a source of friction between the two. This meant constant flexing contests between who's tanks and crews were better. Though it was all in good fun and both parties got along, there was still that big brother little sibling complex.

It was time for Kincaid's rebuttal however and he quickly tried to lay down the lack of logic in the plan. "Look sir, American tanks always operate in platoons of four and in sections of two, this is to avoid mechanical problems hindering mission performance, it also provides safety for all tanks. The fact that one tank is going per recon team is nothing short of **_asinine_** , if something happens who's gonna tow the damn things for Christ's sake?"

Itami shrugged as the pair stopped at an intersection, Kincaid pausing to turn around and wave before picking up his pace to head back to his platoon.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

 **0900 HOURS, FOB ALNUS MOTOR** **POOL**

As the Horsemen and various JSDF personnel stood across from each other geared up, Aldritch and Itami went over the briefing for how the recon operations were going to be carried out.

Each team would have two softback Toyota Mega Cruisers, a Komatsu LAV, and one Abrams. There were four teams, with the one _Here We Go Again_ was attached to being designated as Recon Team Three or RCT3.

Itami's team.

Their mission was a simple one, they would use maps provided by short range UAVs and intel teams to scout potential FOB locations and learn the way of the land and enemy positions from the locals.

"Any questions ladies and gentlemen?" Aldritch had finally asked as the briefing was completed. Several Marine's hands had went up, the first of whom belonged to Kincaid.

"Yes sir uh, why don't we have dedicated recon teams doing this?"

"Because they're all busy having their hands tied conducting other operations."

Next was Elton. "Sir if one of the tanks go down due to mechanical failure how are we recovering it?"

"If in the event a tank goes down and can't be fixed with first echelon maintenance, radio it up and a M88 recovery vehicle will come to assist."

Then came Wilkes. "Yo sir, how are we going to refuel?"

"Every vehicle will be carrying spare fuel jugs for their vehicles as well as the tanks."

Finally Parker asked, or rather said what was on everyone's mind as a lit cigarette hung from his mouth. "This is reaally not a smart idea sir."

Just when Aldritch went to berate Parker another voice rang out, this one belonging to the M88's vehicle commander Sergeant Muldoon.

"Uhhh sir, what do you want us to do?"

Aldritch scratched his head for a moment before snapping his fingers. "Just bring your 88 with my team. Better to have you guys out and about just in case, last thing I need is to try and finagle some sort of escort to accompany you to one of the teams in case of a maintenance issue."

"Yut."

Muldoon and the rest of his crew shrugged and went back to spitting their chewing tobacco out. With that Aldritch and Itami put the squash on all questions and sent the teams to their respective meeting spots to get head counts.

As the crew of _Here We Go Again_ looked over Itami's squad and introduced themselves, the first thing they noticed was that there were **_two_** females. Working with females was a rarity, doubly so for Marines in combat arms MOS's and on deployments. So naturally the crew had almost been completely taken aback at the prospect, even more so considering neither of the two females were rough on the eyes by any means.

The first of the two had an unfamiliar face, a freakishly tall sergeant by the name of Mari Kurokawa, the team's medic. With her light blue eyes and general charming personality, she certainly seemed like the right person to go to for aid of any kind. The fact she was as tall if not slightly taller than Kincaid also gave off an aura of a stern almost motherly demeanor.

The second of the pair however, had a face that the crew knew all too well.

Shino.

When she saw the tank crew that had been assigned to them her reaction was anything short of a surprise. "Holy shit, It's you guys?! I didn't think we'd be on the same team! That's fucking awesome we have got to get another picture of the tank later!"

Kincaid and his crew simply groaned and nodded their heads.

The rest of the team was comprised of; a bunch of Privates with varying skills of use, An older Sergeant Major named Soichiro Kuwahara, a Master Sergeant by the name of Tetsuya Nishina, Sergeant Takeo Kurata, and finally Itami.

The irony of it all was that as far as real combat experience went Kincaid's crew had them beat rank or not. Of course they'd have to just play nice for now even though they were the armored backbone of this mission.

Kincaid and his crew introduced themselves and showed the recon team to the tank that would be accompanying them. They answered any questions the team asked them as well as told them the limitations of what their machine could and couldn't do.

"So this is an American M1A1, she looks like she's been through some shit." Kuwahara said as he looked the machine over top to bottom. He paid note to the name of the gun tube before raising an eyebrow. " _Here We Go Again_? Why's she named that?"

As the the vehicle's tank commander, Elton was the one to step forward and answer the question on behalf of the crew.

"Well Sergeant Major most of us on the crew are veterans." He pointed at a disgruntled looking Kincaid. "My gunner here was about to get out, but as you can see. Well, here we go again."

Kincaid merely nodded and huffed in response, prompting a laugh from Kuwahara. "Seems fitting, either way glad to be on the same team. Feels good to have the big guns with us."

As the sergeant major continued to grill Elton with questions Kincaid noticed Kurokawa eyeing the back of the machine with curious eyes. As the corporal made his way over, he remembered his customs and courtesies before addressing her. "Sergeant Kurokawa, something catch your eye?"

The medic paused from her examining of the vehicle as she fixed her eyes onto Kincaid's. "Ah, Corporal Kincaid was it? I was just 'admiring' your ride here, you're the gunner correct?"

 _Damn she's fucking hot._

"Sure am, and a pretty damn good one too I'd like to think."

 _I haven't even been a gunner that long._

Kincaid gave the side of the vehicle a couple of smacks."M1A1 Abrams, she's a good machine Sergeant. She'll give as good as she gets that's a promise. We push our machines just as hard we push ourselves."

"Of that I have no doubt Corporal, I've heard of the reputation of Marines. I didn't know you operated your own tanks however." Kurokawa paused before running a gloved hand over one of the vehicle's taillights. "I've never seen a tank this close before."

"Not surprising, lots of Marines don't even know the Corps has tanks" Kincaid chuckled before eyeing the tank himself, watching non tankers get excited over the vehicles was always an amusing time.

Especially if there were women involved.

"Sometimes we take the job for granted believe it or not. When you do it for so long you forget just what sort of power you have at your fingertips, the sort of importance you have to the mission. It's a rough but rewarding job, one I wouldn't trade for anything." He paused before putting on a shit eating grin. "Blowing stuff up never gets old."

"Oh I can only imagine, regardless." Kurokawa extended a hand with a warm smile as her eyes bored into Kincaid's. "I feel safer knowing we have a tank with us, I'll be in your care corporal Kincaid."

The corporal put some courage into himself before returning the gesture. "We'll keep you and your team safe sergeant, that's a promise. We'll be in your care as well if we get any scrapes or boo boos we'll be sure to give you a ring."

Kurokawa laughed before ending the shake and adjusting the sling for her rifle. "That's what I'm here for." As she went to go return to her team's vehicles, she paused before turning around and wagging a finger. "Oh and do try not to scare the locals away, hearts and minds remember?"

 _Fucking cute._

"Yep hearts and minds." Kincaid gave a thumbs up as the medic walked away, once she was out of earshot he turned around to mount his vehicle.

Only to see Elton and Wilkes with shit eating grins on their faces on the top of the turret. Their voices started to go high pitched as they began rapidly blinking their eyes.

"'I'll be in your care!'"

"'Don't scare the locals away, my panties are barely hanging on by a prayer as it is!'"

Kincaid glared before beginning his climb and making his way to his hatch. "Kiss my ass."

With that the various recon teams got the final frequencies dialed in, did radio checks and sped out the front of the compound. Meanwhile, the tanks had to be ground guided out by their commanders, gunners, and loaders before moving ahead of their respective convoys.

The entire area outside the FOB's large concrete walls was a massive field, most of it had been leveled from previous fighting and engineering vehicles constantly at work. The result was a large killing field that gave the coalition absolute coverage over the entire area.

As Kincaid and Elton ground guided the tank out the gate they waved to the Marines on post before clambering aboard their war machine. Wilkes soon fell in shortly after and took place behind his loader's 240. Once everyone was aboard the tank's tracks kicked up dirt and dust as it led the rest of the convoy off into the unknown. It was a quiet road march for everyone, this was their first time actually leaving the safety of Coalition controlled territory.

They were now officially in hostile lands something most of the the crew of _Here We Go Again_ was no stranger to, in short order they began to fall back into routine over their tank's internal net. Short chatter coming over the whine of hydraulics and grinding tracks.

"Four-Eyes pick up your scan, keep it slow and smooth bro. Little John maintain this speed, you're doing good. Rampage, radios good?"

Wilkes ducked back down into the turret and looked at the two large olive drab radios in front of him. All green across the board, he promptly popped his head back out of his hatch and manned his gun once more. "Yeah bruh."

Elton watched as the Special Region countryside passed by occasionally rotating his .50 cal weapon station. "Word, alright this is it. Keep your heads on a fucking swivel we got babysitting to do. I don't know what kind of fantasy bullshit is out here but I swear to god it better keep its fucking head down."

 _Here We Go Again_ sped down the road, its gun traversing left and right as it scanned for signs of enemies, meanwhile the rest of the convoy followed in shortly after. As the team went down the road various Marine and Japanese teams could be seen at checkpoints with their armored vehicles.

As they hit a small bend in the road a massive sign jutted up from the grass.

* * *

 ** _You are now entering the Special Region No Man's Land. Enjoy your stay and shoot to thrill! Courtesy of the 3RD MEU_**

* * *

As the convoy continued to follow the road Elton looked at his map and back at the terrain features they were close to the first village. He keyed his comm helmet forward as he came over the net.

"RCT3 Actual be advised we have eyes on a settlement, map describes it as Coda Village. We're gonna go ahead and pull off the side of the road and into an overwatch position, let us know if anything happens down there."

"Solid Copy Horsemen Four, RCT3 Actual out."

As the two groups parted ways the Japanese pulled into the village. In short order they exited out of their vehicles and began the slow methodical process of establishing first contact. Some of the Japanese troops couldn't help but wonder if this was how the first conquistadors felt in the olden times exploring new lands.

Meanwhile, atop a hill over watching the village _Here We Go Again_ sat with its sights fixated on the proceedings. The tank's engine had long been turned off the only sound occasionally coming from its turret traversing. Inside the tank the crew began to fall back into their usual bored chatter.

"Maan this shit beats the fuck out of Afghan." Wilkes lit a cigarette staring up at the sky before letting out a puff of smoke. "That place is fucking garbage."

A series of affirmative grunts came over the internal net.

Benitez keyed his comm helmet to the rear as he paused from reading his manga. "Was it really that bad over there?"

Wilkes had almost choked on his cigarette at that question sputtering before giving his chest a few thumps. "'Was it really that bad over there?' Man that place is a fucking lost cause nigga. Dumbass kids throwing rocks or stealing shit, ANA* not performing for shit or trying to shoot you in the back. Don't even get me started on the fucking Georgians."

Elton chimed in as he keyed his comm helmet back. "We told you the stories man. Niggas will tell you we were fighting 'freedom fighters', that we were over there for oil n' shit."

Kincaid nodded before letting the turret gently slide to the left. "There's no fucking oil in Afghanistan and Freedom fighters don't shoot their own kids just to get a reaction from us. Fuck that place man, you're lucky your first deployment was here."

He paused. "For now at least."

The gunner looked away from his sights for a moment as he took a sip from his Camelbak's hose. "Well peep man, at least we accomplished what we set out to do. Got Osama's dumbass, fucked his buddies up. It ain't our fault the goddamn ANA and the people there don't give a fuck enough to hold what we give em."

He paused as he lit a cigarette, taking a long drag before continuing. "If they cared enough about their home they wouldn't let those assholes run rampant. That's just my take on it though, I only work here."

The crew remained quiet for a while Benitez in particular simply unsure of what to say. It wasn't his war, wasn't his burden to deal with. But this one, the war here in the Special Region this one was _**his**_ war.

And a small part hoped and prayed it wouldn't make him as jaded as them.

"But yeah man man this place is unreal. Wouldn't be so bad if you know." Elton smacked the top of the turret. "We were here working."

Wilkes adjusted his 240 before groaning. "Preach that shit nigga."

Back to normal.

Kincaid took a stretch in his seat before patching through to Benitez. "Hey Little John think we're gonna see some Elves or some shit? So far everything else has been adding up to them being here."

"Beats me _amigo_ , I can't see shit out of these periscopes anyways I just hope they don't have reality bending magic or some OP shit."

Elton rolled his eyes as he put a map he had been reading down. "Both of ya'll are fucking nerds, even if they did have magic I doubt they can stop a fucking tank."

Kincaid went back to looking through his sights as he zoomed back in on the village watching as the Japanese interacted with the locals. "Man you say that now I'm just waiting for these guys to come running out of the village screaming cause some fucking Golem busted out of a house or some shit."

Elton gave Kincaid's back a kick. "Man hush with that shit."

"I'm just saying bro. Like anything can fucking go here, did you get a postcard saying there weren't any Golems or shit here?"

Silence.

"That's what I- _OOF_."

Another kick to the back.

More silence for some time.

"So what do you think of the Japanese?"

Elton looked back up from his map and down at the village before keying his helmet back. "I think they're noob as fuck."

Kincaid took another sip from his camelbak. "Well yeah, they're green as all hell. Itami seems like okay peoples though. You saw what he did during Ginza, man's got his head in the right place."

"Yeah okay peoples is good and all, but out here? In this shit we don't even understand?" Elton slammed a gloved hand on the top of the turret. "Doing this bizarre totally against SOP shit? I need raw pipe hitters dude, not guys that go to anime conventions and don't want to do shit besides be nerds."

He paused.

"No offense. Ya'll nerd as fuck hell I fucking love DC and Marvel, but at least I _**know**_ we can get the job done. These guys don't even know what war is. Itami did great at Ginza and so did his guys there, but this is a different ballpark."

Benitez keyed his helmet back. "Well, they certainly know what war is now."

Elton rolled his eyes. "No man, this is different. This isn't Korea, Nam, Iraq, Afghanistan. You don't become a war-fighter overnight bro, that shit has to be bred into your organization after generations of veterans dude."

Kincaid zoomed in on the Japanese and watched as they continued to interact with the locals as Elton continued. "They don't have veterans, hell their country likes to stick to its own shit. They've got a lot of learning to do man and until I see something amazing? I'm gonna remain skeptical, yeah Itami's a cool dude but like I said. He's got learning to do."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Benitez sighed before going back to reading his comic.

After an hour passed Itami's voice came over the net freeing the tanker's from the boredom they were starting to fall into.

"Horseman Four this is RCT3 Actual."

"Send it."

"We're all wrapped up here you guys ready to move on?"

"Yeeeup. Did we learn anything?"

"Not a whole lot really. They're a small bunch, keep to themselves."

Wilkes chuckled before keying off on internal comms. "But are they real niggas?"

The rest of the crew laughed as Elton responded to Itami. "Cool..I guess. So it was a waste of time?"

" _Nani?_ "

Elton started crackling an old power bar wrapper near his mouthpiece. "Ah shit sorry, had some static. I was asking where are we heading to this time?"

"Oh ahhh, I can't really pronounce the name."

Wilkes furrowed his brow. "DICKHEAD."

Elton rolled his eyes. "Roger that we'll meet you down the hill, Four out."

Once the tank made its way back down the hill and linked back up with the rest of the convoy the journey continued. Things were quiet for a while until Itami came back over the net in an attempt to break the nervous silence with conversation.

And breaking the "Fuck, kill, Marry" game the tankers had been playing over their internal comms.

"This world is something else huh? Real shame we're at war, I haven't ever seen air this clean before."

Elton's voice promptly responded over the net. "Yeah, it is. Probably cause there isn't any man made pollution here, we're probably the first humans to ever bring machines through here too."

A pause.

"Just my two cents though."

After some more silence Kurata's voice came over the net. "There's some places back home like this, Hokkaido being one of them."

If Kurata could have listened in on the internal net he would've known that Elton was voicing how much he really didn't care. Or how the tank commander really just wanted to get this mission done before the sun went down.

Instead the response he got was a simple one.

"Never been, I'm from the Burgh."

"The what?"

"Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania."

"Oh."

Some more silence before Kurata responded.

"Never been."

Kurata also might have heard Elton say. "No shit."

Things went back to being quiet as the convoy continued on its way.

In Itami's vehicle Kurata continued to watch the tank as he followed behind it his eyes occasionally glancing at the passing countryside.

"Sir? You said two of those Marines were like us right?"

Itami looked up from his map. "Come again?"

"Didn't you say two of those Marines were 'otakus'?"

"Well yes and no. Like I said before their definition of it is different than ours over in the West. I think they just like anime."

"Ah." Kurata focused back on the drive before talking again. "I'd never guess, they're just.."

Itami raised an eyebrow. "Just?"

Kurata sighed. "I don't know hard to read? I dunno, I've never worked with Marines before."

Kurokawa had been sitting in the back of the truck blissfully ignoring the sounds of Shino's open mouth breathing as she fell into a sleep. "Maybe you should get to just know them better."

Itami nodded in agreement. "Agreed, they're a bit rough...around the edges but they're okay guys. I think."

"Seems like an understatement. Something just seems wrong about them...it's like as if they're trying their best not to completely break down. Like they've got a lot of pent up..anger? Rage? Depression?"

Suddenly a new voice came over the net.

"They're Afghan veterans, U.S. Marines no less. Their walk of life knows constant war, knows suffering. If anyone is off here I think it might be us."

Everyone registered a look of confusion as Kuwahara's voice came over the net. "Sir, if I may."

Itami scratched his head in confusion there was no way the Sergeant Major could have overheard them, he was in a separate vehicle. A quick glance at the dash confirmed the lieutenant's suspicions.

Kurata had left one of the radios open.

Itami gave the embarrassed sergeant a thump on the kevlar before keying out. "Sergeant Major? What're your thoughts?"

"Something tells me we're the weird ones here sir...we're the ones out of place."

Itami raised an eyebrow. "What are you saying we're gonna wind up like them?"

There was some silence before the older soldier responded. "Well I hope not, but that's not what I mean. What I mean to say is, we need to listen to them. We're in their neck of the woods now something tells me we're gonna be looking to them for answers very soon. Who can say how veterans act except for other veterans?"

More silence.

"Just a nugget of wisdom. Oh and here's another one, keep the net clear and be thankful that was on our own private channel."

Kurata nodded embarrassed. "Roger Sergeant Major."

Silence resumed for some time.

"Sir how old did you say their tank commander was?"

Itami paused from looking at his map before sighing. "Twenty-four, Sergeant."

"And they're mostly Corporals?"

"Just focus on driving."

As the sun began to set, the group made its way towards where another village was supposed to be. So far the other recon teams had similar trips so far, just not as "Vibrant" as RCT3's had been.

"RCT3 Actual this is Horsemen Four, be advised got eyes on **_a lot_** of smoke at our immediate twelve, looks like a fire hold back while we move in to give it a look, over." It was Elton and sure enough the smoke clouds began to become visible.

 _Here We Go Again_ pushed

It was a mess, the fire raged uncontrolled. Whatever had done this was **_very_** thorough and **_very_** violent. After a while there was still no sign of any enemy presence, as the glow of the fire reflected off the front of the tank Elton began to stand his crew down and went to send word over the net.

"All clear, might be natural causes ov-Holy shit! Gun front!" Elton's voice suddenly cut off.

"Horseman Four?! Four!?"

No response.

"Sergeant gun it!"

"But sir surely they can handle it-"

"I gave you an order, move!"

Itami and the other trucks gunned up the road to regroup with the tank, if something was going down that made a tanker panic it had to be bad.

As the trucks got closer the sound of thunder rung out causing everyone's teeth to chatter and waking up a very confused Shino in the process. Soon after the chatter of automatic weapons fire began in earnest another shot ringing out.

Whatever was going on the tank wasn't sparing any expense in making sure whatever it saw was getting as much hurt as it could dish out.

Finally, the trucks crested a small corner and saw it.

Large, red, massive wings. A dragon, one very much on the run but a dragon none the less. Below it a scene of carnage began to play out as the Japanese jumped out of their vehicles and took positions.

The village the team had been supposed to get to had been burned down. Deep down Itami felt something, something new. A feeling of shame.

If only they had gotten there sooner.

As the dragon flew away Itami gave the order to stand down. It would've been ugly to fight that thing, tank or not. The sheer destruction it had caused would have inflicted at least mild casualties to Itami's small group. Something they couldn't afford.

Meanwhile inside the tank, the crew fell into chatter.

"Did we hit it?"

"Yeah, yeah I hit it."

"Then why ain't it dead?"

"MPAT* air might not do the trick bro, fucker was huge. We're gonna need to hit it dead on."

"Is that a shot you can even make bro?"

"Dude...seriously?"

"Jesus...a real fucking dragon. Yeah, we're in fantasy world alright, yo Little John give it two and kill it. Wilkes let's go talk to the Japs, I'm sure we fuckin spooked the crap outta em."

As the chatter continued Kincaid glared through his sights as the dragon flew off into the distance. "I'll get you next time."

Once the tank's engine whined to a dull murmur, Elton and Wilkes dismounted. Clambering down over the front slope, they jumped off and hit the ground letting small ash clouds puff away beneath their boots.

"Enjoy the show sir?"

Elton raised an eyebrow at Itami's dumbstruck expression.

"Sir?"

Itami snapped back to life. "Ah sorry, Corporal. You were saying?"

Elton shook his head.

"Whatever the hell that thing was, it's gone. We didn't see anything in the village but I'm thinking we wait for the fire to die down and move in to assess the situation, just my two cents." Elton took his comm helmet off and ran a hand through his matted hair.

Itami watched as the fire continued to burn, his eyes almost glazed over.

 _ **It reminded him of someone.**_

"Perhaps it just likes to burn things down out of habit."

"Come again sir?"

Itami shook his head and snapped out of his daze before looking at a confused Elton and company. "Ah, sorry. Just a stupid hunch."

"Personally I don't give a rats ass why it did it that thing is a threat and it just so happens we're in the business of removing threats." Kincaid grumbled as he made his way off the tank to join the group Benitez following in short order.

Kuwahara thumped his chest with his fist letting his flak jacket rattle as gear shifted. "Indeed!"

Itami smiled at this proud remark, it was true. They **_were_ ** a team, a newly formed and confused team but one none the less. So long as they stood together nothing would stand in their way.

So with that the Marines and soldiers of RCT3 waited for the fire to die down. A process that dragged on well into the night even with their armored vehicles both groups remained vigilant.

Throughout the night strange noises could be heard off in the woods whether they were local wildlife or other people was anyone's guess.

The Otakus both Marines and Japanese in particular began to formulate all manners of wild speculation, ghosts, skeleton warriors, goblins. They had seen enough fantasy to know the score and they were most certainly not taking any chances.

Naturally this was met with the usual response "Fucking nerds."

 **XXXXXXX**

 _The next day_

The scene that awaited the men and women of RCT3 was a somber one. The dragon had ensured that whatever splendor the village might have had before was all but a distant memory. All that remained now were ashes and death, lots of death.

Too much for the Japanese and just enough to give even the Marines some pause.

Rain had begun to fall turning the ground into mud. As _Here We Go Again_ lumbered through the ruined village Elton and Wilkes had their weapons drawn as they scanned from outside their hatches. There was no telling if bandits or god knew what else hadn't come to plunder the place.

Meanwhile, Benitez looked through his periscopes at the scene in front of him with disdain. He sighed, taking his cross out from under his flak he kissing it as he mouthed a silent prayer.

As the tank lumbered ahead Itami's squad proceeded on foot near the tank's sides covering any blind spots it couldn't maneuver its gun to. Meanwhile, the rest of the vehicles were back a ways proceeding slowly but just as alert.

As the group reached a well in the village center the rain began to slow down to a sprinkle then finally stopped and with it the convoy's approach. Once all the vehicles got situated the order was given to spread out and search the village for signs of survivors.

Elton keyed his helmet back. "Alright Little John kill the engine. You and Rampage stay here and monitor comms, Four-Eyes you're with me."

Kincaid's face registered a look of confusion. "Why me? Who the fuck is gonna fire the gun if the dragon comes back? Wait, why the fuck are we getting out period?"

"Because you know how to talk the language better than I do. Rampage knows how to fire the gun."

"Yeah? And who's gonna load?"

"Just fucking hop out bro we'll be fine."

Kincaid groaned as he fetched his M4 from its weapon mount. As he made his way towards Elton's hatch he gave Wilkes's leg a pat.

"Battle Carry HEAT, if that bitch comes back at least you'll have a round in the tube."

Wilkes stomped his foot as his voice echoed down from above. "Way ahead of you bruh, shit's been in there."

"Word."

As Kincaid clambered out he donned his kevlar before making his way down to meet Elton. As he slid off the front slope of the tank he hit the ground with a look of pain and winced between gritted teeth, an act that caught Kurokawa's attention.

"You alright Corporal?"

Kincaid pat his knees as he kept one hand on the pistol grip for his M4. "Yeah I'm good just have shit knees. Tanker problems ya know? Thanks though doc."

Kurokawa folded her arms before beginning the speech any soldier in the medical field would give troops. "Well don't over do it if you have any problems let me know there's no sense in working till you break yourself."

Kincaid chuckled, not looking away from his carbine as he slowly racked the charging handle back to do a brass check. "Doc working till we break down is what we do, the Corps doesn't have time for band aids and boo boos."

With that he shouldered his carbine and proceeded to help the others search the village. Kurokawa sighed and readied her Type 64 as well. So far these Marines had been; nerds, violence prone, comedians, and foolish. At the same time they had also been; experienced, professional, and easy to talk to. Kurokawa promised herself she'd learn more about how their minds worked before proceeding ahead.

Some of them weren't too bad on the eyes either.

Everywhere the team looked there was nothing but death and destruction. Charred corpses in various states of decay littered the area, it was truly a grim scene. The air was rank with the stench of burnt wood and flesh.

Some of the Japanese Privates had actually emptied their bowels on the ground at the sight and smell of the village.

Kincaid walked up to one of the larger Privates and patted him on the back. "It gets easier."

The private stopped heaving for a moment as he registered a look of confusion. "'Gets easier'?"

"Fuck it, forget I said anything man."

As Kincaid proceeded ahead he reflected on the words he had told the Private.

He had seen men die in a great deal many ways; torn in half, vaporized into bloody red mists, burned alive, and even decapitated. It never got any easier, but he had learned to bottle it up a long time ago. Afghanistan taught him that, It was his hobbies and his fellow Marines that helped keep his mind off it.

Of course there had also been a time where he couldn't bottle it up.

Elton made his way up to Kincaid slowly racking his shotgun's slide back to ensure everything was good. "Real fucking grim bro. Making waves with the Japanese."

"Like you are?"

"Nope, but at least I don't sound like a fucking edge lord."

Both Marines' boots made sloshing noises as they continued on their way through the village, their weapons up but not fully shouldered. Everything was just mashed together into a slush of wood, debris, mud.

Charred corpses.

It was an absolute mess and the stench was something the likes of which they had never smelled before.

Kincaid tried his best not to retch as he stepped around another corpse. "Fucker sure did a thorough job."

"Yeah, yeah he did." Elton eyed another ruined hut the pair passed. "But I guess when you go and pick on shit that can't fight back your bound to do a lot of damage."

Kincaid tried his best to not look at the smaller corpses as the words sank in. "Yeah...looks like ISIS has some competition.."

The pair continued on their way until they finally found a semi intact hut. This was one of the very few they had seen that looked structurally sound enough to warrant a search. Each Marine hugged a wall on opposite sides of the door and waited for a few moments as they listened for any sounds of life inside.

Nothing.

The two Marines exchanged glances before Elton turned inwards and kicked the door in clearing the left side of the room as Kincaid cleared the right, their PEQ-15s' laser dots scanning every which way.

"U.S. Marines!"

Nothing, no response.

Elton lowered his shotgun and went to give the okay before something caught his eye.

In the center of the room a large figure was hunched over three smaller ones, they were all charred but had somehow kept the position they had been in during their death. The larger figure had tried to shield his family from the flames, it was to no avail however.

"Fuck, hell of a way to go out."

"Well at least he went out like a man."

Elton shook his head as he understood the gravity of the situation. It was something he could relate to. "Yeah...a god damn family man."

The two Marines took a knee, Kincaid wincing as he did so. They took their kevlars off and hung their heads down for a few moments before rising up redonning their kevlars. As they made their way back to the door they stopped.

Standing at the door frame Kurokawa had watched the entire event.

"Are you, religious men?"

Elton lit a cigarette with Kincaid doing the same in short order as they made their way past the confused medic. "Nah, just felt like the right thing to do."

Kurokawa watched them as they walked away before looking back into the hut. "I suppose you're right.."

After a few more hours of similar occurrences the men and women of RCT3 finally met up back the village well. Distraught and shaken they stopped to catch their wits as Itami took his kevlar off.

"We need to find this thing's nest when we have the time and prevent further attacks like this from happening again." The rest of RCT3 nodded in agreement the dragon was a top priority target that would be relayed up to the higher echelons as soon as possible.

Wilkes yelled down from the top of the tank as he cracked his knuckles. "Shit we'll waste that bitch the next time we see him, he might've shrugged off an MPAT round, but I doubt he'll take a HEAT too well."

Elton nodded in agreement with this. "We'll bring the pain ten fold next time we see that bastard, scout's honor."

It was true, if anyone could bring that thing down it was the tankers. As all the troops present went back to tending to their respective stations Itami threw a bucket down the well. As it hit the bottom a noise could be heard, one that caused everyone to give pause.

It had hit something soft.

Elton made his way to the top of the well and flicked his shotgun's side mounted flashlight and looked down into the well. He scanned around for a moment before yelling back. "Yo, we got a live one! We need to get her out fast!"

The troops promptly sprung into action, the Komatsu was brought forward and lowered Itami into the well using a wench system. Meanwhile, Kurokawa readied her medical supplies and a stretcher.

After a few minutes of waiting Itami finally emerged from the mouth of the well with an oddly dress woman in his arms. There was something ethereal about her, the green flowing dress, long blonde hair.

The pointed ears.

Kincaid's mouth went agape. "Fuck me running...looks like we really are in a fantasy world."

Benitez popped his head out his hatch and mirrored his gunner's expression. " _Dios Mio..."_

As everyone continued to stare at the elf Itami made his way over to Kurokawa and left her be as she went to work with Shino. This was a job for females and the men kept their distance out of respect.

Meanwhile, Elton clambered aboard the tank and sent the info up to Aldritch over the radio. A dragon and a survivor, an elfish survivor no less, this was something that had to to be sent up the chain.

It wasn't long before Kurokawa returned and gave the rest of the team the prognosis on her patient. The elf woman was alive, but in bad shape. She had acquired Hypothermia overnight and had a slight concussion on her head. She would survive, but needed to be looked after with extreme care.

Itami folded his arms and addressed the rest of the team. "We need to head back to Alnus Hill, on our way we'll stop by Coda Village, we should let them know about what happened here."

With the rest of the team in agreement _Here We Go Again's_ engine fired up and led the convoy out of the village and back to Coda Village. Meanwhile, the elf woman was wrapped inside a blanket and put inside Itami's Vehicle with Kurokawa keeping a close eye on her.

As RCT3 approached the village, _Here We Go Again_ veered off the road and into an overwatch position, allowing the rest of the team to enter the village without scaring anyone.

* * *

 **1100 HOURS, CODA VILLAGE  
**

"A fire dragon? Here?! We need to leave this place!" The village leader panicked as Itami briefed him on the situation. As the villagers began hearing this, panic began to spread throughout the village.

Families began loading carriages and supplies were hauled back and forth. As Itami and RCT3 watched the scene unfold the village leader went on grimly. "Once a dragon has tasted the flesh of man it's appetite cannot be satisfied." His eyes scanned the horizon nervously. "That beast will return, mark my words."

Suddenly the ground began to shake slightly as a noise began to grow closer, the panic had begun to settle as villagers stopped to try and identify where the noise came from. Their answer slowly began to take shape as it lumbered into town.

The tankers had decided to show up.

 **XXXXXXX**

A large tan square began to move into the village atop it was a flat head that had a long nose and a single eye. It had no feet but somehow it propelled itself along the ground using some sort of black material on either side of it.

As it finally stopped just in front of the village sign it sat there for a moment hot air coming out from behind it for a while and then finally stopping as it emitted a soft whine. The villagers, unsure of what to do, merely sat there dumbstruck for a few moments.

Well, most of them.

Suddenly, one of the younger boys curiously approached it against the protests of others. As he approached the front of its body, two dark skinned men came from the top of it followed by third lighter skinned man with a mustache. Each of them had some sort of strange helmet on their heads and wore green clothing similar to what the others wore.

The boy stood there in awe as they began to come down, suddenly another sound was heard and a fourth man revealed himself from just under the snout of the iron beast. He too began to climb out and joined his fellows on either side of the beast's snout.

They stood there for a while and exchanged confused glances until finally one of the darker ones began to read from a strange red book. "People of Coda Village, I am Corporal Parker Elton of the order known as the United States Marine Corps. To my left and right are the rest of my men. We are warrior knights from a land far far away known as the United States of America. We know that you are afraid right now, but fear not! We have faced far more dangerous foes on our iron steed here. So long as we breath life we hereby swear that we will protect you to the best of our abilities, no foe has bested us before and none will now."

As the man continued his speech, one of the other warriors with the mustache knelt down towards Aidan. He smiled as he removed his helmet and took a ripe green apple from his pocket offering it with an outstretched hand.

The boy looked back towards the others who simply stood there trying to make sense of what was going on, not seeing any source of disagreement he reached out and took the apple from the warrior's hand. As he did so, the warrior finally addressed him

"What's up little man?"

The boy stared at him in curiosity for a moment as he tried to comprehend the strange figure of speech.

"What is up? The sky? What else could there be?"

The warrior chuckled and nudged one of his fellows talking in a strange language. The pair laughed for a few moments before he returned his attention back to the boy.

"Ah, you wouldn't understand."

He slowly lowered a gloved hand. "I'm Kincaid. What's your name?"

The boy cocked his head to the side in curiosity, he had never heard a name like that. He shook Kincaid's oversized hand as he answered the question. "I'm Aidan."

"Aidan huh? Well shit, never heard a name like that before."

Kincaid paused for a moment. "Say, ever wanted to climb aboard a tank?"

"A tank?"

"Yeah."

Kincaid stomped his boot against the top of the strange wagon. " _ **This**_ is a tank, but not just any tank. She's the best tank."

The boy raised an eyebrow. "Her? It is alive?"

"Nah, but I suppose I have a lot to explain huh?" Kincaid paused before bringing his voice to a whisper. "You know this thing can kill a dragon?"

"Really?"

"Sure can, wanna take a closer look at it?"

Aidan understood this, he knew what dragons were and this man had just claimed this "Tank" could kill one.

That was more than enough motivation for him to get a closer look.

 **XXXXXXX**

"Well would you look at that." Kurata took his kevlar off and shrugged. "I guess they do have a soft side after all."

Itami and the rest of RCT3 watched as the villagers drew closer to the tank in awe and curiosity. The Marines had brought a huge war machine into a village a machine known back in their world as a symbol of destructive power. In this world, they had turned it into a symbol of protection and pride.

This was something that simply couldn't be done back on Earth.

Itami watched as Kincaid picked up a young boy and brought him aboard the tank, several other villagers below the tank put their fists in the air and cheered. They may have had to leave their homes, but so long as these strangers from far away were here they would be safe on the roads ahead.

Kuwahara approached Itami and folded his arms. "I've been in the self defense forces for a long time and I've worked with a lot of different men."

Itami listened as the old soldier continued. "I've always heard stories about Marines that have varied greatly from time to time, but the one thing that always remained constant was their ability to get the job done. Looks like the rumors were true."

The old Sergeant Major gave Kurata a pat on the shoulder. "Told you they know a thing or too."

Kurokawa smiled and watched Kincaid act like a grand warrior knight. "Warrior Knights" where did they think up these ideas? Agreeing with her superiors she voiced her opinion as she eyed the tanker.

"Yeah they're really something else."

Between the Japanese and the Marines, the villagers were in good hands.

* * *

 **Jargon and Lingo**

 **HESCO-Might need to just google this one but I'll keep it short and simple. Basically wire mesh with tough canvas in the shape of a cube. You fill the cube up with sand and voila, durable and efficient wall. Shit's been the gold standard of base defense for years.**

 **MPAT-Multi Purpose Anti Tank. There's a fuse on it that allows the round to air-burst, useful for low flying targets.**


	9. Clash of Giants

**Chapter 7: Clash of Giants  
**

" _C'mon you sons-of-bitches, do you want to live forever!_ "

GySgt Dan Daley at the Battle of Belleau Wood WWI

 **1400 HOURS CODA VILLAGE**

"You're kidding me right?"

"That's a negative. Sir the mission's changed, looks like we're going to be escorting these villagers out of here. This dragon's got em spooked, we got eyes on it earlier. He's a big fucker."

"Jesus Christ Four. Do you even have enough fuel?"

"So far...yeah. We haven't had to transfer yet thank god."

"Jesus...alright, alright. I'll let command know, but so god help you if you break down out there."

"We won't."

"You better not...Oh and Four."

"Yeah?"

"Stay safe, good hunting, bring your boys and that tank back in one piece. Horsemen One, out."

"Solid, Four out."

Elton sighed as he took his comm helmet off setting it down next to his cupola. As he removed his balaclava he ran a hand across his bald head. He had just come dangerously close to getting his ass put into a sling, operating this long without any logistics was just asking for trouble.

The Abrams was notoriously finicky when it came to fuel, more so than other tanks due to their jet turbine engines when they sat at the idle. They could operate for a long period of time sure, but not every tank operated the same way. Some burned fuel faster than others, some leaked more than others, some could even give phantom readings on display panels.

So naturally speaking it was no surprise that tankers developed all sorts of superstitions in regards to the machines they operated. Some were even fully convinced that the tanks themselves had personalities.

Elton patted the top of the turret as he smiled. _Here We Go Again_ just so happened to be made of stronger stuff, she was a good tank. The kind of tank that would treat you right if you treat her right, and her crew most certainly treated her right.

As Elton climbed out of his cupola and sat atop it, he watched the scene unfolding around him.

Various villagers made their way to and fro between buildings as they gathered all their belongings. Occasionally one of the other tankers or one of Itami's team could be seen assisting them.

Elton smiled as he lit a cigarette, it felt good to be doing work like this. It wasn't often that Marines actually got to play hero, especially not tankers. In fact, most were looked at as nothing more than brutish monsters. A by product of the long war on terrorism and a new generation of self entitled millenials. A generation who weren't alive to see 9/11, a generation who put more value on social media than anything else, a generation who believed everything the media told them.

This didn't just apply to Marines either, in fact, to be a a service member of any branch during times such as these was to be scoffed at. War wasn't cut and dry anymore and hard lessons learned in Afghan and Iraq had taught the U.S. armed forces that, propaganda did the rest. Naturally a gap formed between civilians and service members one that had never been wider in history. Many veterans had begun to outright loathe civilians, who were these people to judge them? Those who had never aside their own petty needs for something bigger? Those who had never experienced not being in control of their own lives?

Tough times indeed, but there were still those who believed in those who served their nation. These were people who helped their service members remember.

Remember that someone on the other side was rooting for them.

Elton pondered on all this for a few moments, what sort of reaction would this campaign bring? What would the rest of the world think?

What would people back home think? Would they be looked at invaders come to destroy the balance of a world that didn't need them? Or pioneers of the modern world bringing peace and order to a world that clearly lacked it?

What would his wife and baby girl think? Would his wife even stick through this?

 _Fuck, I just work here.._

"Corporal Elton! Mind if we come aboard?"

Elton shook his head and leaned over the right side of the tank towards the source of the noise. Standing at the base of the tank was Itami and Kurata.

"Yeah, you're good come on up!"

After a few awkward moments of Elton trying to teach the pair where to put their feet and hands in order to climb, Itami and Kurata finally made their way to the top of the turret, but not without their pride being sorely tested first. As the two caught their breath, Elton shook his head and flicked his cigarette butt away.

"So, what's the plan after this?"

Itami finished gulping from his canteen, as he placed the cap back on he let out a small sigh as he watched the evacuation continue. "Well to be honest, I'm not entirely sure just how far they plan on going. I think they just seem content to get as far away from here as possible."

Elton rolled his eyes. "So...we're just going to keep following them? Sir, with all due respect, we're already operating outside of our capacity. We're combat support, not hearts and minds. Now mind you, I'm not against helping the locals, but facts are facts. If it was as simple as us just hunting the damn dragon down and being done with it I could understand. But if something breaks, or we get stuck? It might be a while before help arrives."

Itami sighed as he took his Kevlar off, running a gloved hand through his bushy hair. "Yeah, command wasn't too thrilled with the idea either. But we can't just leave them here, not with that dragon flying around."

Kurata fussed with his rifle's sling as he removed his helmet. "Agreed, the Lieutenant is right, but with your tank on our side? I doubt that dragon will last long."

As the two Japanese soldiers fist bumped, Elton shook his head.

 _These guys are a bunch of fucking clowns._

Before the conversation could continue Elton heard a horse whine in terror and a voice yell immediately after.

Kincaid's voice.

Then the situation escalated out of control, in moments a series of shots rang out causing everyone in the village to immediately drop what they were doing.

As Kurata and Itami froze up, Elton immediately swung into action. Grabbing his 870 off the top of the turret, he pumped a round into the chamber as he made his way down the turret and down the front slope.

"Benitez! Wilkes! On me!"

In moments Wilkes and Benitez came running from around a building, their carbines raised as they filed in behind Elton.

"Where the fuck's Kincaid!?"

"Fuck I don't know!"

"Don't look at me I was helping some farmer!"

 **XXXXXXX**

Kincaid slowly lowered his carbine as the smell of gunpowder filled his nostrils.

In front of him sat a stunned Kurokawa, a young girl she had been trying to tend to, a dead horse, and a newcomer. A grey haired young girl dressed in elaborate blue and green robes.

Grey, the color of someone usually well into the elder years and here it was on someone who didn't look much older than Kincaid's sister.

Moments earlier Kincaid had been conversing with one of RCT3's privates about the finer points of tanking when he heard it. A horse's whine of terror and a young girl's scream, the grey haired one's to be exact. In moments he had made his way to the source of the noise, identified the threat, brought up his carbine, and with the accuracy from years of qualifying expert and sharpshooter at the rifle range he killed the horse.

Keeping his M4 at the ready, he made his way towards Kurokawa putting a hand on her shoulder. "Doc you good?!"

The medic sighed as she looked at him with a smile and a thumbs up."Y-yeah, that certainly escalated didn't it?"

Kincaid sighed and lowered his carbine taking a moment to look at the dead horse. "Geez doc, this is why you always keep your weapon on standby."

"Well Kincaid, I am a medic. Fighting should be the least of my concerns." She motioned towards the two girls. "I'm just glad these two young ladies are safe."

Kincaid shook his head, in the Corps everyone was trained to be a rifleman. War was an unpredictable thing, and even the rear echelons should always be prepared for a fight. Thus long ago it was decided that every Marine regardless of MOS would be capable of shouldering a weapon and fighting if the time came, they were also trained to never leave their weapon behind.

The JSDF clearly didn't adopt that method of thinking.

"Doc? If I may? Next time someone may not be here here to pull you out of a jam. Just a thought you know?"

Kurokawa put on a frown as she turned her face towards him. "We're not trained like you Kincaid, we have our methods and you have yours. Not everyone here is going to wave their weapon around, my job is to preserve lives, not take them."

"Respectfully _**Sergeant**_ , that's a pretty piss poor way of looking at it. I'm a tanker and my job is to be on my tank and fight from inside it. Yet here I am rifle in my hand helping civilians and shooting horses. Everyone's gotta leave their comfort zone sooner or later, hell our Corpsmen are expected to fight with us too."

Kurokawa sat there stumped as to what to say, it wasn't like Kincaid was wrong. In fact he was 100% right, she was just too stubborn to admit it. More importantly he had the audacity to make a Sergeant look like a fool, make _**her**_ look like a fool. This disrespect wouldn't go unanswered.

But it was also the first time someone had put her in her place too.

 _Who does this man think he is?_

Kurokawa's rebuttal would have to wait however. By now the rest of RCT3 and Kincaid's crew had caught up and were spread out taking stock of the scene. Once they saw that everything was clear and were briefed on the situation, weapons were lowered and order was restored.

Meanwhile, the grey haired girl was seen to by Kurokawa and the rest of RCT3. She sat there silently, her blue eyes staring at them in curiosity. Who were these strange men and women? They certainly spoke her language albeit somewhat fractured. They also spoke different ones as well, ones she had never heard of before.

And that _**sound,**_ it was like the sound of thunder. In moments the horse had been dead like as if someone had merely uttered a word for it to be so.

As Kurokawa continued to talk to the young girl, she turned her head towards a now departing Kincaid.

"T-thank you!"

Kincaid merely gave a thumbs up as he continued to walk forward.

 **XXXXXXX**

 _Two hours later.._

After hours of preparation and assistance, the villagers were now finally ready to leave. Wagons were loaded and a long caravan of carts began to form.

It was decided that RCT3's trucks would lead the front of caravan meanwhile the tank would stay off the main roads in order to provide overwatch and have a better view of the general going of things.

In short, another babysitting job.

* * *

 **Wilkes's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 7: Kansas "Carry On Wayward Son."**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

Kincaid watched through his sights as the long caravan of wagons and carts continued on, it was an impressive sight that extended for almost miles. In a way it reminded him of the "log trains" he had to provide overwatch for in Afghanistan, long convoys of wheeled vehicles.

Kincaid sighed as he felt the tank's tracks begin to grind as they picked up speed to go setup onto another hill, he held power as he kept the turret right over the right side, the convoy in his sights all the while.

" _Carry on my wayward son,_

 _there'll be peace when you are done._

 _Lay your weary head to rest._

 _Don't you cry no more._ "

"Man this is some bullshit, how far do we plan on going?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he felt the tank slowly grind to a halt atop their latest position, fishing into his cargo pocket he took out a cigarette and lit up. As he let out a long cloud of smoke, he resumed to looking back through his sights, his cigarette hanging loosely from his mouth.

"And you tell me I bitch you too much, we're in a tank protecting civilians. We're fucking heroes bro."

"Yeah whatever. Sir Kincaid, the black knights and the fucking beaner here to save the day. Yeah sounds like a good Redbox Movie."

Atop the tank Elton rolled his eyes as he scanned the horizon, his own cigarette in a similar state as Kincaid's. "Rampage, shut the hell up. I had to improvise, gotta speak La Lingua Franca you know?"

"'English motherfucker do you speak it!?'"

"Classy, yo Little John we still good on fuel?"

Things were silent over the internal net, Benitez no doubt struggling to position himself to see the fuel gauge. "Eh, so far so good. Three-quarters in the rear and full in the fronts."

Elton sighed as he took another drag. That was all well and good for now, but just how far did they plan on going? Before he could thank Benitez for the update Wilkes promptly interrupted him.

"In other news, did anyone see that medic mean mugging Kincaid? She sure as shit ain't in his care no more, what was her name?..Kuro-wawa?"

Kincaid took another drag before looking up from his sights. "It's Kurokawa dumb ass, she's probably mad pissed off that I made her look like an idiot. I mean really? Who the fuck doesn't take their rifle with them?"

The rest of the crew chuckled, it _**was**_ a pretty amateur thing to do.

"Ever the ladies man, you probably sullied her honor or some shit bro. Now you have to sword fight her to win her heart back."

"That's really not how it works at all man."

"Either way, she was like really hardcore staring at you when we walked back. I think you caught her eye, another one for the looney bin?"

Benitez listened in and raised an eyebrow at this statement, sure he had been working with his new crew for a month, but there were still some things that even he didn't know.

It was a well known fact among the rest of the crew and those close to Kincaid that his luck with women was a strange thing. On one hand he had gone through plenty of relationships and "intimate encounters". On the other hand, just about every woman he had came into contact with was either crazy, mean as hell, or "damaged". Needless to say it made for some interesting stories.

"Looney bin?"

Wilkes and Elton chuckled as they continued to look around, clowns even while on the job. "Oh you didn't know? Four-Eyes always finds a way into the heart of the weirdest chicks."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he puffed at his cigarette, once again he had to defend his pride. "Hey, listen there's a method to my madness. You ever sleep with a crazy chick before? I'm telling you you're missing out. At least I don't go fucking girls in other people's cars, _**Rampage**_."

Wilkes laughed as he slapped the top of the turret. "Bruh you let me borrow the damn thing, I still filled it up after."

"Yeah with more than gas, fucking asshole."

"Yeah whatever. Yo did you see the fucking grey haired chick? That shit's fucking unreal bro, she looks like she came out of Middle Earth."

"Yea-whoah, hey I got something! Two-hundred Meters center of the main road!"

The laughter promptly stopped as the crew braced for a possible fight, getting setup in their stations they waited with bated breath for a situational update.

Elton looked through his commander's sights as he saw what Kincaid saw. Crows, a lot of crows, but it wasn't the crows that was so odd. It was what they were circling around in the center of the road.

Kincaid saw it, Elton saw it, Wilkes and Benitez could only suspend their disbelief when they heard the exchange over the radio.

This world just kept throwing more surprises and the Marines were very quickly beginning to lose their nerves over it.

 **XXXXXXX**

"RCT3 Actual, be advised due north of your POS by about 100 meters we have eyes on what looks to be a small child. She's got a...pretty big axe too, how you trying to proceed?"

Silence.

"RCT3 Actual?"

More silence, the faint sound of tracks starting to move off in the distance.

In truth Itami and Kurata had heard Elton's voice over the radio they were just too transfixed to pay attention. There was a Gothic Lolita in the middle of the road, and now she was headed right their way.

There was a very strange aura about this girl, maybe it was her jet black dress with red ties and bows, her scarlet eyes, or perhaps it was the giant halberd she carried effortlessly off the ground. Either way something didn't quite add up.

Before Itami or Kurata could respond to Elton's transmissions, laughter erupted from some children riding in one of the other trucks.

"Oracle! Oracle!"

As the kids surrounded the girl they laughed and giggled as they told her about the strange men that accompanied them. As Itami and Kurata listened in, they noticed a particular wisdom to the girl's words, like as if she was a lot older than what her appearance suggested.

Then she was standing right outside Itami's window, the last thing Itami heard before the door was opened was her giggle.

"I want to ride too."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Oh...oh my god."

"What, what's going on? I can't see out these periscopes for shit!"

"Shes..."

Wilkes almost choked on cigarette smoke as he started laughing. "Bouncing his dick!"

The rest of crew of _Here We Go Again_ sat there dumbfounded for a few moments. Part of them wanted to laugh but another part of them was unsure of what to say.

Something was was _**very** _ wrong.

This went on a for a few moments with Kurata's complaints coming loud over comms. Strange considering complaining about it was the last thing any sane person should have done. But Kurata was a man who stuck to his habits.

"Wait-where'd she go?"

Kincaid had only blinked when he realized that the girl was gone, it was like as if she just disappeared into thin air.

"Hey...hey where the fuck did she go?"

Elton had been changing some stations on his radios when his blood froze. "What do you mean?"

"Bro she just fucking disappeared! She's fucking gone!"

Kincaid looked back through his sights and promptly jumped in his chair.

The girl's face was staring back at him through his sights a huge grin on her face.

"Oh fuck! She's on the tank!"

Elton and Wilkes were now well aware of this fact, they had watched her close the gap in a heartbeat. Now here she was standing atop the turret, looking directly at two very startled tankers.

She wasn't human. No human being acted the way she did or moved the way she just had.

For a few moments both groups sat silent as they stared at each other, suddenly the girl giggled as she looked directly at Elton. Her sensual voice felt unnatural as she introduced herself.

"I am Rory Mercury, Apostle of the god Emroy. The children told me of strange men in steel wagons that came here to fight the dragon and keep them safe. Are you them?"

Elton and Wilkes merely nodded as she walked around the top of the turret, examining everything atop it in great detail.

"It's so big, I wonder...does this one ride as well as the others?"

Elton was unsure of what to say he looked at Wilkes with a raised eyebrow as Rory made her way over towards him. Her eyes digging into his like drills.

"Please?...might I take a look inside?"

Wilkes reached for his M4 as he yelled out. "Yo if you don't get the fuck of-"

The Marine never got to finish his sentence, in a heartbeat Rory had picked him up by his collar and had thrown him off the side of the tank and into the grass. Wilkes easily weighed 220 pounds, even more with all his gear on. The fact that this girl was able to toss him like a ragdoll was anything but reassuring.

Rory looked at Elton with a smile as she began to lower herself into the turret. "Oh he's quite fine I assure you, now please...do let me have a look."

Elton had fought terrorists, gotten into bar brawls and had faced the worse Staff NCOs the Corps could ever throw at him. Yet this girl easily trumped all of that.

He didn't like it as he she went inside he promised himself he would knock her down a peg. Human or not.

Now it was Kincaid's turn to meet Rory Mercury, Elton didn't have to take a look to see what was going on. He could hear everything over Kincaid's helmet.

"Oh! There's a man in here too!"

"W-Who?! The fuck are you!?"

"My name is Rory Mercury! What's yours?!"

"Jasper Kincaid?"

"Jasper, what an interesting name...is this your wagon?"

The sound of giggling. "Oh? This art on the walls...I can tell you're into _**that**_ sort of thing."

"Why the hell are you in here?!"

"I'm into that sort of thing too, but I'm not a child..here let me show you."

"Hey...hey! Yo knock it off!"

"I want to sit too..."

"No, get the fuck out!"

"No I want to sit _**there**_."

Fearing the worst, Elton looked down into the turret and saw Rory sitting in Kincaid's lap her arms wrapped around his neck. He looked at Elton with a look that said "I don't know what to do, help?"

Kincaid loved women just as much as any "normal" Marine. Hell he even used to have a special place in his heart for ones that dressed like Rory but the fact he looked absolutely terrified if not completely turned off set off warming sirens inside Elton's mind.

Eventually she stopped and hopped off the tank but not before leaving with a parting message.

"All you interest me.."

With that she made her way back to the rest of the convoy as quickly as she had arrived.

Meanwhile, Wilkes slowly got up off the grass and made his way back to the tank. He clambered up with a body language that visibly displayed the embarrassment and anger he had. Once he redonned his comm helmet he looked at Elton his voice taking on a tone he saved only for the worst of situations.

"I'm going to beat that bitch's ass."

Elton shook his head as he lit a fresh cigarette. "You're not alone."

"She's lucky I didn't fucking shoot her."

"Why didn't you?"

"Because I-"

"Got gripped the fuck up and thrown."

"Shut the _ **fuck**_ up man."

Now Benitez was on the net adding to the banter. "Oh what?! Man I didn't even get to see anything!"

"Horsemen Four, this is RCT3 Actual..."

All the tankers keyed their comm helmets forward as Itami came over the net. " _ **What?!**_ "

"Oh...uh Rory will be coming with us, she appears to be some sort of religious figure to these people."

Elton slammed his fist on the top of the turret. "Sir, respectfully. What the _ **fuck**_!? Are you out of your goddamn mind? Did you fucking see what she did to my loader?! There is nothing safe about that girl!"

There was some silence before Itami responded. "Please...I really don't have a choice in the matter."

Elton felt his blood pressure begin to rise before he sighed, letting out a cloud of smoke.

"If she turns, I will not hesitate to give my guys the kill order."

"Understood."

Elton shook his head as he heard the tank's engine begin to whine to life.

"This fucking guy...this fucking guy."

* * *

 **1500 HOURS, ROCHE HILL**

The rest of the ride had been relatively quiet as far as the net was concerned. Itami deduced the tankers were too angry to say anything after their brush with the apostle.

He looked out the back of his window and gazed down at the convoy, wagons as far as the eye could see. They definitely couldn't go much farther, for all intents and purposes they were in uncharted territory. The sun was high in the sky now the heat bearing down and being absorbed by the truck's armor.

Suddenly a dark shape began to form in center of the sun.

Wings, a tail, horns.

A dragon.

All hell broke loose once the dragon was upon the convoy. Wagons were set ablaze in the wake of its fiery onslaught, what wasn't set ablaze was picked up or torn apart by razor sharp claws.

Then a sound came, like a crack of thunder. The dragon had been swatted from the sky and cast down to the earth. It skid a few meters before standing up, the left side of its face a mangled mess. It got up for a few moments and looked around absolutely confused. Clearly it had never been humbled in such a way.

Especially not by a tank.

"RCT3 Actual this is Horsemen Four, get these civilians out of here. This one's ours."

"No we're a team, we can assist you. Hold up I'll bring my trucks around!"

"Negative RCT3, if that thing gets a bead on you it's game over. We have the firepower, let us handle this!"

"Four!"

"God Damnit don't fucking argue with me mother fucker! We've been fucking lenient with the bullshit up till now! Keep your trucks back and get the civilians out of here!"

Itami sat there dumbfounded as the sounds of the battle began to continue. All he wanted to do was the right thing, from the very beginning all he wanted to do was the right thing.

Now he had just possibly pissed off the men he had just started to get to know better.

"Sir?"

No response.

"Sir!"

Itami looked over at Kurata with wide eyes before the sergeant gave his flak a shake by the collar. "Sir they're gonna need our help, we still have a .50 and the LAM* we can still help them!"

The lieutenant shook his head. "But-"

Shino's head came forward and into the cabin. "But nothing! They want to be stubborn about shit well so can we! We're a team and if we want to form the bond we're gonna need in this place we gotta come together!"

Itami looked at the rest of his troops as he ignored the devilish grin on Rory's face.

"Let's show them we can fight just as good as them." Shino gave Itami's shoulder a pat. "This our time to shine sir."

Itami clenched his fists before picking up his handset. "All trucks form up on me! Wedge heavy front, we've got a fight to get to!"

 **XXXXXXX**

"Why won't you fucking die!?"

Kincaid hovered his sights over the dragon's chest as he indexed a HEAT round. Meanwhile, Wilkes worked with the speed of an artisan as he effortlessly loaded in another HEAT round, the breech clanging as it closed.

Once again Kincaid, Elton and Wilkes fell into fire commands.

"Gunner HEAT dragon!"

"Identified! range..300 meters and closing!

"Up!"

"Fire"

"On the way!"

The tank lurched back, the sound of the breech clanging open as it ejected another aft cap for a round. As Kincaid looked through his sights he watched as the round hit the dragon's chest causing it to stagger back and roar in pain. As the smoke cleared from the shot, he smiled as he observed his handiwork. The dragon's rib cage was exposed, its white bone clear for all to see.

But yet the beast still charged, it was a hardy creature Kincaid had to give it that.

"Christ is that bitch still not dead?!"

"Cut the chatter Little John! Okay one more shot and this bastard's done for, hit em in the fucking chest Four-Eyes!"

Once again Wilkes opened the ammo door and in seconds had another HEAT round loaded, slamming the safe/arm handle up as he prepped the gun.

"Up!"

Kincaid hovered the sights over the beast's exposed chest cavity. "I'm going to put your head on my fucking wall.."

"Fire!"

"On the way!"

Nothing.

"What the hell? Fuck, master blaster* on the way!"

Kincaid twisted the master blaster handle as he went through misfire procedures.

Still nothing.

Either there was something wrong with the gun, or there was something wrong with the round, either way the dragon was quickly gaining distance, they needed to fix that. Elton keyed his comm helmet back as he started relaying orders.

"Rampage! Go through misfire procedures! Little John, max throttle get us the fuck away from that thing! Four-Eyes see what you can do about using small arms!"

In moments the tank lurched back as the turbine engine shifted soon they were going at full speed as they went into reverse. Meanwhile, Elton and Kincaid gave the dragon everything they got, Kincaid with the coax 240 and Elton with his .50 cal. They targeted any open wounds that Kincaid's rounds had previously penetrated, and although it caused the dragon no small amount of comfort it did little to stop it.

Meanwhile, Wilkes fussed with the breech as he went through every conceivable misfire step; he opened and closed it, checked the circuit breakers.

Which meant only one thing, a bad round.

They'd have to stop the tank in order to safely remove the round and get it back into storage. "Honcho! It's a bad round! Fuck man we gotta stop!"

"No sooner had Wilkes said stop, Benitez had jumped the gun and had actually slowly brought the tank to a halt. Just enough for the dragon to close the gap as it used its wings to propel itself forward.

Then all order was lost.

"Fuck! Little John what the fuck are you doing! Don't stop!"

"But I thought Wilkes sai-"

"No! Fuck man keep going!"

The tank once again picked up speed, but it was already too late.

Kincaid's eyes went wide as he saw a large clawed hand cock back and quickly bring itself down.

"Ah fuck! Brace for-"

Suddenly the tankers were knocked back as the entire vehicle spun out of control, the men within being tossed around like ragdolls. When the vehicle finally lurched to a stop, Elton weakly called out over the internal net.

"Is everyone good?!"

"Driver good!"

"Loader good!"

No response from Kincaid, when Elton and Wilkes looked at him, their blood froze. Kincaid's head was cocked back lazily, his eyes closed shut. His head had been slammed against his control panel knocking him out.

In moments a distressed Wilkes was upon him, tears streaming down his face as he held Kincaid.

"No...no no no! Christ Kincaid's fucking down! Fuck! What do we do!?"

Elton slammed his fist against the side of the turret, sure he could use his tank commander's override to take control of the gun, but the risk of Kincaid falling over and getting hit by the breech was too great. Not to mention any further jolts could potentially put him in a worse condition.

To make matters worse Elton had definitely heard the tell-tale snap of the track breaking. A quick glance outside his periscopes confirmed this as well.

It also confirmed that the dragon was leering down over the turret, its mouth open and lighting up as flames began to light up its mouth. In moments Elton had brought the .50 up and was dumping rounds at its face, driving the beast back as best as he could.

Without the main gun, they couldn't do any lasting damage. Elton continued to pour fire at the dragon, causing it to stagger and move back as it attempted to cover its eyes.

 _Maybe I shouldn't have told Itami to beat feet, I didn't think he'd actually do it though...fuck_

For just a moment Elton felt a very real fear. The fear of failing at his job, not keeping his brothers safe, the fear of making a grave mistake.

The fear of potentially putting himself into a situation in which he wouldn't come back home to his daughter.

 _No, not here. Not fucking here_

It only took the tank commander a few moments to think of a plan, they needed to do something and fast. "Little John, Floor it into the bastard! Knock him off balance!"

"But we don't have track-"

"We still got some fucking power trust the goddamn machine!"

In moments the tank's engine shifted once more as it gained power, surging forward in moments.

"Crew brace!"

The entire vehicle shook as it slammed into something dense, the sound of a massive beast yelling in confusion as it toppled over in response. The tank moved continued to move forward relatively fine until it finally got loose of one of its tracks, the telltale sign being it starting to drift. As Elton looked out of his hatch back the dragon he noticed a massive explosion rock into its now prone form.

"Horsemen Four! This is RCT3, hang in there we're on our way!"

Elton breathed a sigh of relief as he saw the rest of the armored vehicles make their way over, another rocket being launched from atop the Komatsu. He didn't have time to watch the scene continue to play out however, his attention went back to his now unconscious gunner and friend.

"RCT3 Actual, get your medic ready when you can. My gunner isn't doing so hot."

* * *

 _Two Years Ago_

 **SEPTEMBER 24TH 2013, EN ROUTE TO FOB SHIQVANI, HELMAND PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN  
**

Kincaid sighed as the sound of tracks continued to grind the dirt and rock underneath the tank, ahead of him another tank continued to kick up dirt and debris, casting it backwards at anything and anyone behind it. In this case it was Kincaid's tank and the worst of it was being sent right at him.

He always hated doing road marches, as routine as they were they always kept him on edge. Between the searing Afghan heat bearing down on and the constant dust being kicked up at him, he was hardly a happy man. It also didn't help that he was exposed for the world to see outside his loader's hatch.

Kincaid fastened his goggles and shifted uncomfortably as he looked around the tank. As far as the eye could see was an endless brown expanse of dirt, the occasional mud hut and distant mountain often broke up the monotony, but for the most part it was hardly a tourist's delight.

Then again he and the rest of his platoon certainly weren't "tourists".

To the local insurgency and the people who called this land their home? Kincaid and any other non Afghan was an invader, aliens who came with their war machines and weapons from distant lands. They were here claiming to bring "justice and freedom", but there were many who weren't sold on this sales pitch.

As Kincaid fastened his goggles tight and secure his balaclava. Moments like this made him glad his gear could make him somewhat comfortable. Once that was done, he once again checked the status of his M240B machine gun. He often got fidgety when he was bored outside his FOB or not. Off to his right his tank commander Sergeant Mendez lit up a cigarette as he looked around to the right of the tank.

Kincaid promptly lit up one of his own after all if the tank commander was doing something nine times out of ten it was okay for his crew to do the same. Kincaid ducked down and away from the Afghan climate he lit up a menthol cigarette and tossed the rest of the cigarette pack off to the unmoving form behind the gunner's station.

"Bruh you good?"

Kincaid's gunner, Corporal Raymond, had been dozing off again. Raymond promptly turned around and picked the pack off the vibrating turret floor with a mustached grin as he fished a cigarette out and lit it. He then proceeded to toss it back to Kincaid keying back on his comm helmet as he did so. "Heh good looking bro."

Kincaid patted Raymond on the back with enthusiasm. "Oh you know our motto, we deliver." He then promptly stood back back up and went back to looking around at the vast Afghan expanse.

Mendez keyed over the tank's internal net. "Well guys think about it, in two months we'll be packing up the FOB and back on our way to Camp Leatherneck. I don't know about ya'll? But this has been a pretty fast and smooth deployment so far."

He then pat Kincaid's comm helmet with a grin. "Hey don't sweat it though I'm sure some asshole will try to pick a fight with us sooner or later, ya'lls cherries will be popped don't you worry."

Kincaid shook his head and rolled his eyes as he took a drag from his cigarette. "Shit you know I don't give a damn Sergeant, I just want all our guys back home. Can't say the same for Raymond and Wilkes though."

As this was said a loud throaty laugh the crew was all too familiar with came over the net. "Yo we better waste **_someone._** "

Raymond scoffed as his voice came over the net. "Wilkes why don't you focus on driving and not hitting anything. Don't think I forgot about that **_intentional_** ditch you hit last week, shit had my head spinning for days."

Wilkes and Kincaid laughed before going back to their usual duties. They still had a good hour's drive away from the other FOB, but moments like these helped break the boredom. They were tankers being goons in giant tanks was what they did best, very deadly well trained goons.

As Kincaid watched the other tank make a sharp left at a dirt intersection something caught his eye. Just before the turn there was a small hut with a very basic wooden fence to its left. It wasn't the hut that caught his eye though, but the man standing at the entrance.

He was garbed in traditional Afghan clothing, robes and a turban. As Kincaid's tank got closer the man glare he didn't give it too much thought though, it was usual for the locals to behave this way. They had grown tired of foreign vehicles creating such a ruckus and as a result had anything but positive feelings towards the men that accompanied them.

Evidently Mendez had seen the man, quickly sending up the information over the net. "Hey this is Four. Did anyone else see that guy at the hut at the last intersection? He was giving us the real stink eye over."

As their tank finally took the same left, the man went back inside before their platoon commander came over the net. "Four this is One, be advised we saw the hut, but there wasn't anyone near it over."

Kincaid looked back over the rear of the tank at the hut. The man was gone, but he swore he saw his face watching them from one of the hut's makeshift windows. As the rest of the platoon brushed it off as nothing but an angry local, Kincaid's world turned to dust and fire as he was thrown into the tank's turret interior, yelling out before a white light filled his eyes.

* * *

 _Present Day  
_

 **1900 HOURS, ROCHE HILL  
**

As Kurokawa shined a light into Kincaid's eyes he rose up violently, with a terrified look he glanced around before calming down. He wasn't in Afghanistan anymore, the event that he had just relived was still in the past, and as he looked around he realized he was still in another world distant from his.

Kincaid pat himself down and realized his plate carrier and pistol weren't on him, he also noticed he was on a stretcher next to one of the trucks and that his glasses were nowhere to be found.

"Well guess I'm not dead, I'm pretty sure angels don't wear camouflage and sling rifles over their backs." Kincaid winced in pain as he put his hand to his head, he felt like shit. "How long was I out for?"

Kurokawa furrowed her brow. "About five hours, you're **_very_** lucky you didn't damage anything."

Kincaid simply groaned as he let the knowledge sink in. He hadn't had a good night's rest that lasted **_that_** long in a while. Kurokawa then began running through post concussion procedures as she began to assess the extent of the damage sustained by Kincaid's concussion.

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

Kincaid gave a weak smile. "Fifty?"

"You're not helping, now count down from ten to one"

"Ten, forty five, sixty?"

" ** _Kincaid._** "

The Marine gave a chuckle. "Geez lighten up doc, with the exception of this headache I feel fine. I remember everything up until the dragon took a swing at us."

"How can you be joking right now?"

"It helps with the stress doc."

He froze for a moment. "Wait, the dragon, we killed it right? What happened after I blacked out?"

Kurokawa shook her head and smiled as she told him the events that had gone down after Kincaid's concussion. She told of him of how they had gotten there just in time and began tearing into the dragon with their truck mounted weaponry. How the elf had finally woken up and revealed the dragon's sensitive eyes as weak spots and how Rory's acrobatics had aided a LAM's rocket in completely shearing off the dragon's right arm. She also told him that the dragon had been badly mauled, but had escaped and was still very much alive.

Kincaid sighed as he rubbed his head some more. "Jesus, all of that and that asshole is still alive? God damnit."

As he became more aware of his surroundings his eyes and ears began to adjust. He could hear the sounds of trucks running in the distance, of men yelling as they worked, and more importantly the sound of a tank running.

As he looked over his left shoulder he could see the source.

The rest of the men were busy dragging the tank's track back into place. Using the armored they had managed to somehow drag the track back and to the front of the tank's left side. Having accomplished this the tank could simply drive forward slowly and back onto the track. Reconnecting the track after that was a simple matter.

As Kincaid returned his attention back to Kurokawa he noticed a shape atop the truck. He didn't have to look twice he already knew who it was just off the aura emanating alone.

Rory had been sitting atop the truck with her legs folded over each other, listening the whole time. "That was a most fine performance Jasper, not many men have charged a fire dragon and lived to tell the tale. Emroy was most pleased by that, I could **_feel_** it."

Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and took out a pack of cigarettes, headache or not old habits die hard. Much to the distress of Kurokawa and the amusement of Rory, he lit a cigarette and began to take a long drag. Looking back up at Rory, he raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah well not many dragons have fought a Marine tank and lived to tell the tale either, actually come to think of it I'm pretty sure we just set a record there."

Rory giggled at Kincaid's response as she looked him over once more. "You You Es Mareens are truly a unique order, I look forward to wreaking havoc and death with you in the coming battles."

Kincaid slowly stood up as he took another drag from his cigarette. Dusting himself off he got a good stretch in before shaking his head. "Thanks for the help n' all but don't push it."

He then looked at Kurokawa before giving his head one last good rub. "Doc thanks for watching over me, if you don't mind I'm going to head over to the tank."

She looked at Kincaid with a look of concern before sighing. Marines were stubborn creatures. "Do what you must, but take it easy would you?"

"Yeah, easy. No such thing."

As Kincaid began to turn around towards the tank Kurokawa called out to him. "Kincaid, before you woke up, you cried out a little bit. Were you having some sort of bad dream?"

Kincaid stopped dead in his tracks as he crushed his cigarette beneath his right boot, without turning his head to look back, he responded. "I'd rather not talk about it, maybe some other time doc."

As Kincaid began to walk away he stopped once more and turned around. "By the way, you can call me Jasper."

Kurokawa smiled warmly before responding. "And you can call me Mari, oh and **_Jasper_** don't think I forgot about your outburst at Coda Village. When we get back to Alnus I want to discuss that after I do some more checkups on you."

Kincaid sighed and turned around. "Doc we have corpsmen back at the FOB and look it was nothing. I just hadn't had a smoke in a while."

Kurokawa folded her arms with a stern and serious look.

"Jasper you're still my patient and I was here when you sustained that concussion as such you're under my care until I know for sure that everything is okay. I'm **_not_** budging on this."

Seeing that he wasn't going to win Kincaid simply shrugged. There was no way the corpsmen would let some other country's military doctor take full responsibly of him anyways.

"Alright Mari, you win." With that, Kincaid continued back on his trip over towards the others.

Rory giggled mischievously as she folded her arms. "This has truly been a most interesting day."

Kurokawa smiled at Kincaid as he walked off. "Yes, it most certainly has."

 **XXXXXXX**

As Kincaid approached the tank he was able to get a decent look at the extent of the damage, long claw marks were dug into the front right half of the tank's turret. Three serrated cuts stretched from the bottom of the turret and extended just to under the edge of the .50cals barrel.

It was the tank's first battle scar and a testament to the strength of American armor and engineering, once again the M1A1 Abrams had proven itself in a situation it had never been built for. Meanwhile, the tank's left track was sitting snug under the road wheels and waiting to be reconnected.

As Kincaid got closer all the men working there abruptly stopped, Wilkes had seen Kincaid approached and had broken into a dead sprint towards him

" ** _Dude!_** " Kincaid braced for the impact and was promptly tackled to the dirt. Wilkes gave his signature laugh and hugged his fellow Marine and best friend. "Jesus bruh! Can't be fucking scaring us like that! You fucking asshole."

Kincaid sighed and pat Wilkes back as he returned the hug in kind, Wilkes and Kincaid were practically family since tank school. They had served with each other longer than anyone else on their crew, as a result they had a deep bond not just as fellow Marines, but as brothers.

As the two Marines got up Kincaid heard a familiar voice. "Welcome back to the land of the living, heads up!"

Kincaid looked towards the top of the tank as Elton tossed down his glasses, a large can following down in short order.

Monster XL.

Made for those who dared to drink boldly where no other energy drink connoisseur drank before, it was heaven to Kincaid. As he popped the tab and drank the tall beverage, he sighed deeply and put his glasses back on. He then promptly lit a cigarette and took a swig from his beverage with a satisfied sigh

The simple things in life.

"I needed this..."

"Seems like it, you okay Kincaid?"

Kincaid turned around at the sound of Itami's voice, the tired lieutenant making his way over with the rest of his team. "I'm glad you're alright. Truth be told I didn't know how bad the situation was when Elton came over the net."

He came over and shook Kincaid's hand. "Looks like the tank isn't the only thing built to last."

Kincaid took another swig. "Yeah I guess you could say that. Dieing here isn't exactly on my to do list."

Itami gave an exhausted smile. "Well I'd certainly hope not."

The pair looked back at the tank before Kincaid shook his head. "Well...ever put track back on a tank before?"

Itami exchanged an exhausted glance with Kurata before answering on their behalf. "No, can't say I have."

"Well since we're still in the whole brothers in arms mood, want to learn?"

 **XXXXXXX**

 _A few hours later.._

Kincaid pat the tank's front slope and rubbed the coarse armor. "Good girl, you did good today. Now get us back to the base and I swear I'll do PMCS on you till the cows come home."

As the men gathered around and gave congratulatory handshakes for a job well done a strange purple light began to fill the night air. Strange purple orbs began to rise from the ground and drift away into the sky.

The troops looked around confused for a few moments. For all the beauty the scene brought it was yet another reminder of just how alien this world was to them. Meanwhile, the surviving villagers congregated as they went about tending to their dead and wounded, makeshift graves beginning to pop up in increasing numbers.

Itami didn't have to tell the men what to do as they all went to the villagers and joined them in mourning the dead. They weren't their people, but their safety had still fallen into their hands. The proportion of those living to those buried didn't help the troops feel much better either.

In short, a small part of them still felt like as if it was there fault more hadn't survived. Such was the life of those in uniform, always pushing themselves as far as they could to get as much as they could done.

Eventually Aidan saw Kincaid and did what any boy did around an older man he looked up to as a brother.

He went to him for comfort.

Marines honored their dead by continuing to fight and serve in a way that would make their fallen brothers proud. They honored their own through actions and deeds, not words. Kincaid had been doing this for a while as well even if he tried his best to forget. Most of the family members he had ever lost died of natural causes and the only friend he had ever lost was to war.

He had never lost anyone to a beast hellbent on unwarranted death and destruction.

So in the end he simply said nothing and let the boy weep in his arms. As Kincaid looked around he noticed Itami was doing the same for a young girl. Kincaid smiled upon noticing it was the same girl that Kurokawa had tended to back in the village, little victories all added up in the big scheme of things.

Eventually the villagers had composed themselves and began to make their way to the remaining caravans. As they did, the village leader removed his hat and turned to face the men and women who had helped them make it this far.

Though they spoke a different language and brought strange magic with them from a different world they had provided more help than the villagers had ever been used to. The elder shook his head and sighed.

"You must understand that we have to take care of our own, while we are forever indebted to you this is where we must part ways I'm afraid."

In the purple glow of the night the village leader regarded each of the members of RCT3 with a sullen look they had suffered greatly through this ordeal, but had emerged stronger from it.

Itami merely nodded as he exchanged a handshake with the leader. "I understand, truth be told I'm not sure how much farther we could accompany you. Know that should you ever need assistance both my forces as well as those of the Marines are here to serve. You are always welcome in Alnus."

The elder nodded. "I fear that time of need may come sooner than we think someday."

Itami and the rest of RCT3 smiled and began to wave goodbye to the people they had worked so hard to protect. As they did so Kincaid returned from his tank and approached Aidan and his parents with a green MARPAT eight point cover. He slowly took yet another painful knee in front of the young boy.

"I want you to take this hat. It's a special hat that holds a lot of meaning behind it."

As Kincaid lowered it onto Aidan's head he smiled at how well it had fit the boy. He then put his hands on both of Aidan's shoulders with a serious look.

"That hat is a symbol of a long and proud line of warriors, it represents strength and courage in the face of overwhelming odd and that's something you displayed greatly from the moment I met you. I've never gotten the chance to make an impact on someone like this, to actually keep someone who couldn't fight back safe. So I want you to know this is an important moment for me."

Aidan looked at the warrior he had only just met with awe and reverence, he had been tasked to carry on a very important symbol and would wear it with pride.

"Long as you have that hat? Ain't nothing in the world that can keep you down, _**nothing**_."

As Kincaid continued his speech he tried not to lose his composure, he had just met this boy, but he knew he had influenced him in a powerful way. "A proud legacy sits on your shoulders now kid, I worked a long time to earn the right to wear it just like my father before me. You may not be a Marine but you let people know you got to earn the respect of one. Got that?"

The boy simply nodded as he fixed the oversized hat onto his head. "Will I ever see you again?"

Kincaid shrugged with a smile. "Who knows maybe you will." He then chuckled. "Ah I think you will I'm a hard guy to get rid of."

He then turned his attention towards Aidan's parents. "You take care of yourselves out there too, and make sure he doesn't lose that. They're a real pain in the ass to buy."

Both parents nodded with the father taking a step forward to shake Kincaid's hand. "Thank you our son's never had a big brother figure before. Throughout the entire attack I think a small part of him knew you'd keep us safe, he wouldn't stop talking about you and your comrades once we left the village."

Kincaid gave a weak smile before returning the shake. "Well I've certainly never had a younger brother." He paused before a feeling of longing washed over him. "I do have a younger sister though..."

 _Who I might've just left behind if things had been worse._

Aidan's father smiled. "Well she must be proud."

"I think so."

For just a moment Kincaid remembered family day at Parris Island. The day his family finally got to see him after three months of training, see the new man he'd become. That had been one of the most emotional days of his life and he could still remember the look on his sister's face when she saw him in uniform for the first time.

Confusion but also overwhelming joy. This moment almost reminded him of it.

With that the family went to join the rest of the villagers and soon they began to disappear from view as they continued their journey.

As Kincaid and the rest of RCT3 waved goodbye Kurokawa approached the Marine and put a hand on his shoulder. "That was a real nice thing you did there Jasper, do they train all of you Marines to care about civilians as good as you fight?"

Kincaid watched as the group departed. "No, you have to learn how to do that."

"Well I feel as though you'll have plenty more to learn."

Kincaid and the rest of his crew looked at each other with curious looks before Kurokawa motioned behind them. Upon looking at what she was referring to the four Marines sighed.

Ttheir babysitting job was far from over.

Gathered behind one of the vehicles was the grey haired girl, the blonde elf, and Rory. They weren't alone however as several of the other villagers were there as well.

On cue the four Marines each lit a cigarette before trying to assess the situation.

Before they had time to even say anything, Itami's voice broke the silence. "Don't you worry just leave it to us!" The four Marines looked at the Japanese officer with eyes wide open they were bringing refugees back?

Seeing the futility in arguing, Elton chuckled a little before standing next to Itami and folding his arms. "Well shit, guess that means us too. Marines don't leave jobs half finished."

The rest of the crew nodded and gave their own little quips.

 _Here We Go Again_

 **XXXXXXX**

In the purple glow of the night the tank sat triumphant with its gun elevated and over the front. The M1A1 Abrams had once again proven its worth as a dependable and well built tank. It gotten the crew to where they were and had kept them alive, whatever issue had occurred with the faulty round would be easily solved once they returned to Alnus.

As cigarettes were distributed and energy drinks popped open the crew began to discuss about the events of the day.

"So Honcho, you tell Aldritch what happened here?" Kincaid lit another cigarette before throwing the lighter to Elton who in turn caught it and lit his own cigarette before tossing it to Wilkes.

"Heh yeah, he's pissed like I mean **_really_** pissed, but hey tank's good and we're good. We've got enough fuel to get us back ain't that right baby?" Elton gave the top of the turret a good pat and the rest of the crew followed in kind.

To a tanker his tank was more than just his vehicle, it was his home albeit a very dangerous home that could move and shoot, but still a home none the less. In this case their home had been attacked, had fought back, and survived.

Wilkes lit his cigarette before tossing the light to Benitez's waiting hands. "Yo sir can kiss my black ass, I don't see him fighting dragons and hitting it off with the ladies eh Four Eyes? Or should I say Jasper- ** _kun_**?"

The rest of the crew all looked at Kincaid with evil smiles, Kincaid angrily took a drag of his cigarette before beginning his defense. "Man fuck off."

Benitez had been sitting off on the right fender of the tank listening this whole time, feeling it was his turn to add into the fun he leaned forward. "My man listen, from the moment we were back at Alnus all the way till now she's been acting strange around you."

Elton and Wilkes nodded their heads in agreement, these were facts. As Benitez took another drag from his cigarette he continued. "I mean for fucks sake _ese_ , medic or not she practically sprinted over to the tank, damn near kicked Rampage off and insisted she look over you. She wouldn't even let any of us come to check up on you!"

Kincaid had been sitting there with a frown the whole time as he flicked his cigarette over the side of the tank he crossed his legs and folded his arms. "She's a medic? The only person who can give first aid here?"

The rest of the crew still wasn't convinced, but they let the topic go for the moment.

As they continued to enjoy their moment of peace Itami walked up to the tank and stood at the front slope. Seeing this, Kincaid tossed a pack of cigarettes down to Itami. He caught the pack and had just put one of the cigarettes in his mouth when Benitez reached forward to light it.

"Thanks uh..." Itami had forgotten the Hispanic tanker's name, he had really only interacted with Kincaid and Elton the most since their arrival through the gate and subsequent operations.

"It's Benitez sir, but the crew calls me Little John take your pick."

Itami went with the easiest answer and chose Benitez, he figured he still had to earn the right to use the crew's nicknames. Taking a drag from his cigarette he unslung his rifle and set it down on the front slope of the tank.

"So we're gonna try to get in a decent night's rest before we SP in the morning, we're aiming for 0700 hours? I'll be having the privates pull guard duty, that good with you guys?"

The tankers all nodded in agreement, sleep was a must and they had all gotten very little of it the past few days. The fact they didn't have to pull guard duty was an added bonus to their morale.

"By the way, Sergeant Major Kuwahara wanted me to let you guys know, that was damn fine job you did with the dragon, in fact all of my guys were pretty amped when they saw you drive by and attack it head on. Said it was some real 'Godzilla shit'"

The tank crew laughed as they took in the information, they felt like rock stars. Elton got a good stretch in before responding to Itami.

"You're alright people's sir. You pulled through today a hell of a lot better than I thought you would. I'm an honest guy, Ginza or not I didn't know just how capable you were."

The rest of the crew exchanged looks of affirmation as Elton continued. "You did good sir." The tank commander gave Itami a a thumbs up. "If we have to work with you again I'll feel a bit safer now."

Itami felt his spirits rise and for the first time he felt something he had never felt before.

Acceptance, pride.

The lieutenant smiled before chuckling. "You think they'll make a manga out of that?"

Wilkes let out a cloud of smoke. "Shit I sure as fuck hope so. Bunch of sexy ass Marine tankers, dragons and elves? Shit why not." He paused.

"Oh yeah and you guys."

The group laughed for a few minutes as they exchanged their own perspectives on the events of that day. All well and fine until Itami dropped the question he had been trying to hold back.

"Some of the others including Rory...wanted to know if they could ride aboard the tank during the trip back. Do you think we could make that happen?"

Kincaid had just popped open another Monster and no sooner had he heard this he shot a stream of energy drink out his mouth.

" ** _Say what!?_** "

Meanwhile, the rest of the crew had almost choked on their cigarettes upon hearing this information. Itami knew he had a short window to get his word in and took the opportunity while it presented itself.

"Look they were adamant, they want to ride on the great iron steed that saved their lives! And Rory won't get off my ass about it! She's been pestering me and I can't take it anymore! **_Please_** I'm begging you guys here, I swear I'll owe you big time if you do this for me."

The crew each looked at each other, an officer owing them a favor could pay dividends later on. This could be a golden opportunity for more supplies of the PX variety. Elton finally cleared his throat and answered on behalf of the crew he was the tank commander and his word held great weight.

"Fine, but we want supplies sir. I'm talking cigarettes, snacks, chips, porn, energy drinks, you name it we want it. The villagers only go halfway, if we drive onto the base with locals atop the tank our asses are done for. We're already in deep shit as it is."

Itami sighed as he took in their request it certainly wouldn't be easy, but then again not having Rory around made his life slightly easier. He finally put his cigarette and responded to their demands.

"Deal. I'm sure I can pull some strings, officer privileges you know? And by the way call me Itami, we're friends now."

The tankers each put their hands in and shook Itami's, the deal was finalized. Itami knew what would happen if he didn't see it through and he really didn't want to see **_that_** happen either.

As Itami took his leave and returned to the rest of the vehicles Kincaid sighed. "Jesus, he better see this through especially if that crazy chick is coming aboard."

The rest of the crew nodded in agreement none of them liked having Rory around. Sure they liked a good fight, but that girl looked like she got herself off on it and that was enough to weird them out.

It also didn't help she definitely wasn't human. Something was very wrong about her.

As the crew began to unpack their sleeping bags and set up on various parts of the tank Wilkes began to laugh. "Hey Four Eyes, maybe medic-chan will want to **_ride_** too."

Kincaid unzipped his sleeping bag and took his boots off. As he slid into his sleeping bag he responded to Wilkes joke.

"Yeah and maybe Rory- ** _chan_** will whoop your ass again."

"Fuck you."

The rest of the crew laughed as they began to settle in for the night and soon the sounds of snoring began to usher forth.

Before Kincaid zipped up his sleeping bag, he reached into the loader's sponson box and pulled his M4 out. Racking the charging handle back, he instinctively set it next to him. Guard duty or not, he didn't want to have his ass out in the wind if something happened.

He looked at the stars as he got warm in his sleeping bag, the purple glow from the orbs leaving the ground helped added a sort of calm to the scene as well. He had slept out in the field under many a starry sky, but this one had beaten them all by a mile.

Turning over on his side he looked over at the rest of RCT3's vehicles, as he squinted in the low light he could make out a shape atop one of the trucks.

It was Rory and she was waving at him with the same evil smile she always seemed to have. Kincaid promptly turned over onto his other side, held his M4 close and tried to get some rest.

It was going to be a **_very_** long day tomorrow.

* * *

 **This chapter was a pain in the ass.  
**

 **I had to effectively make the tank malfunction in order for the dragon to survive. After all if that dragon died then and there there'd be no Tuka arc and therefore no Yao.**

 **In truth the damn thing would've been dead in probably three shots, no probably two. We're trained to be tits on with our accuracy at gunnery, don't even get me started on how much we maintain those guns.** **Long story short dragon only lives because the plot says so.**

* * *

 **Jargon/Lingo/Acronyms**

 **LAM-Also known as the Nissan/IHI Aerospace 110mm LAM. It's basically the JSDF's version of the Panzerfaust 3.**

 **Master Blaster-A nifty little red handle that aids in firing the gun. Used when the gunner's controls don't send the electric charge to the shell for whatever reason. It's used for misfire procedures but sometimes we're dickheads and use it anyways just because of the funny zip noise it makes.**


	10. Homeward Bound

**Chapter 8: Homeward Bound  
**

" _Gone to Florida to fight the Indians. Will be back when the war is over_ "

Colonel Commandant Archibald Henderson, USMC, in a note pinned to his office door, 1836

 **THREE WEEKS SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 0700 HOURS, CAMP ALNUS, MARINE CP**

Kane made his way through the winding hallways and up the stairs of the CP. Along the way he passed by offices and planning rooms, the sounds of strategies and discussions could be heard as Marines planned for the coming campaign ahead. Finally making his way to his office he stepped inside and closed the door behind him

It had only been a little under a month since the initial push through the gate and already the FOB had begun taking shape. Kane was impressed by the speed of his Marines and the JSDF engineers. In a short span of time buildings had been built and large fortified positions erected around the FOB. Though FOB was shortly becoming a word of the past, fortress was becoming a better term to describe the coalition base.

After a series of back and forth discussions both sides agreed on a name that wouldn't seem to favor their respective country.

Camp Alnus.

As Kane made his way through his office he plugged his MP3 device to a small stereo he had delivered to his office, scrolling through his music he found a song that would calm his mood.

* * *

 **Colonel Kane's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 8: Midge Ure "The Man Who Sold the World"**

 ** _PLAY_ _?_**

* * *

" _Oh no, not me. I never lost control."_

As the music began to start in earnest he made his way over to a large window behind his desk. Outside he could hear the sounds of progress, the sounds of a coming campaign and all the assets required to see it through to the end.

Kane stood behind his desk as he looked out the window to his office. He watched as more men, machines, and supplies continued to file into the base. Tracks and engines rumbled as armored vehicles were ground guided to various motor pools both American and some Japanese. Flatbed haulers and armored trucks screeched to a halt as men hurried to offload their precious cargo.

Behind them Kane could see new forms begin to take shape as air assets both Marine and Japanese began to get trucked in piece by piece. Some had already made their way to the airfield and had long been assembled, flying overhead with both rotor and screeching jet engine.

Kane saw all this knowing things would eventually reach this point.

Escalation.

The initial push into the Special Region had revealed one very important thing, scope. Not just of the enemy, but of the world itself. Scientists on the other side continued to rack their brains over just how large this new world was.

So far they were only coming to more shocking conclusions.

Anyone could look into the Special Region's night sky and see there were stars. Stars meant the Special Region certainly wasn't just a region, but possibly an entirely different planet. The thought of that alone was enough to make the scientific community's head spin. Mankind had stumbled upon a new world with limitless potential and once information started to leak out the world began to react.

To many leaders of the world, this meant a variety of different things. The Special Region was a new frontier a chance for monetary gain as well as international status. The only issue of heated debate was, who could potentially go in? America and Japan had first dibs on whatever was beyond that gate and many world leaders in the U.N. felt cheated or otherwise "left out" because they didn't have eyes on whatever was going on inside. Without the media or UN observers in who could say what the coalition was up to? It was something that angered those against their efforts to no end.

The only leaders that knew truly anything were the closest of allies to both Japan and America many of whom had already given their support in an official capacity by sending aid to Japanese citizens affected by the attack. As a result they were promised a chance to send their top officials in when things were deemed as safe as possible in secret meetings.

Not everyone with an opinion was a world leader however.

There were also many people who believed that Earth had enough of its own problems to be trying to solve between all the growing warzones and political disputes, that the gate was better of destroyed or closed off.

Then of course there were the Japanese citizens themselves. Many of them wanted nothing to do with the gate even with the recent Ginza attack. Such a "Portal" could only bring more headaches then good fortune. The fact that it had almost been a month without any substantial word or items of value from within the gate didn't help either.

The truth was those who needed to know what had been going on already knew and those who didn't would find out when it was the right time.

Kane rubbed his head in frustration, the sheer scope of everything was enough to make any military leader stressed. The coalition wasn't leaving anytime soon that was for sure and as he went to his desk to look over a logistics report he could see exactly why.

In addition to the 3RD MEU and the JSDF division that had pushed into the Special Region two more divisions of the JSDF were to be mobilized. This didn't include the Special Forces units that had been operating in conjunction with the two major forces, their presence had been largely kept a secret for security concerns.

With three total divisions of JSDF and a MEU, coalition commanders were certain they had the numbers they needed to have a significant presence in this new world. However there were some who believed that this still wasn't enough.

Many U.S. military strategists believed that a MEU was small and at odds with the large number of Japanese forces and were answering directly to the Japanese. They couldn't have been any further from the truth. While the Marines were indeed there to support and advise the JSDF they were operating independently as well.

For starters there were the Special Operations teams. Though the SEALS in particular were of a completely different branch they still answered up the chain to Kane. There were also the MARSOC ***** Raiders who had just recently arrived unofficially.

As was their M.O. both could blend into local towns and populaces getting information all the while. Or if needed they could always just completely flip the proverbial switch and start making heads roll, either was an option and both had been of great benefit.

Then there was of course the actual non Spec Ops Marines themselves. They operated their own assets, supplied their own men and would lead their own missions if needed. In truth the Japanese had allowed the Marines these privileges as a result of their skill in the art of carrying out war. If anyone could wage a war of this nature efficiently it was the Marines. They'd done it so many times now that it felt like second nature.

The inside of the gate wasn't the only place seeing an influx of arms and personnel either.

In the months preceding the Ginza attack the U.S. presence in the Pacific had increased substantially. U.S. naval ships patrolled the waters and entire divisions of the Army were put on alert. Should anything go awry inside or outside the Special Region these assets were ready to move in to support at a moments notice.

The Japanese weren't sitting idle either. The entire JSDF had been put into a level of readiness never before seen as they prepped for whatever would come next in the coming months.

Numbers weren't the only thing being tossed around however. Ever since the initial push through the gate coalition forces saw widespread use of both new and old, and lesser used equipment. A new battlefield and enemy called for new tactics and armaments, many advanced pieces of gear had been taking a back seat to more reliable proven ones.

While the Japanese reserve units sent through had long been using older cold war equipment the Marines had been tailoring their gear to suit the mission. Larger vehicle mounted weapon systems remained the same while infantry found themselves toting around interesting kit.

American logistics allowed for a greater deal of flexibility regarding what equipment went where, one of the many perks of having the world's most powerful military.

While the Japanese troops coming through were stuck with using the older bulkier Type 64 the Marines had approached the issue of standard issue in a different manner. It was a given that the new breed of enemy faced in the Special Region favored close combat, the type of combat unsuitable for long rifles such as the M16A4. In order to prevent any possible mishaps it was mandated that all units operating outside the wire were to be issued M4's in place of their M16's.

The M4 was lighter and more compact, a much better weapon for the job at hand. Meanwhile, rear echelon or "non combat" personnel would still be toting M16's. It was a simple switch given the same engineering between the two weapons and the Marine Corps had long been practicing this idea even in Afghanistan.

The Japanese had tried to emulate this approach as well. At one point the idea had been pitched about bringing type 89s through and issuing those to certain forward operating units. The weapons not only fired the same 5.56 used by NATO forces but were also shorter lighter and easier to fix attachments to. Unfortunately the idea was canned. The budget simply wouldn't allow it and issuing out radically different weapons to troops meant having to run them through training in order to properly use the new rifles. There simply wasn't time for that and right now proficiency and familiarity were key.

For hard target elimination weapons such as the Javelin and non vehicle mounted TOWs began to be used less in favor of less expensive and more appropriate systems such as the M72 LAW, AT-4, SMAW, and MK19. The more advanced systems would only be used as a last resort for targets requiring the utmost in precision and expedient neutralization. The Carl Gustav would have been an excellent choice as well except only certain units in the Army used them.

Meanwhile, shotguns and Stinger missiles began to become almost standard for squads operating outside the wire. Against an enemy who could really only fight up close the 870 Remington, Mossberg 500 and M1014 excelled like no other. These weapons performed admirably alongside the M4s and if anything or anyone closed the gap the only thing they'd find wanting was 12 gauge buckshot.

Great force multipliers for the Marines not so much for the Japanese. They didn't have shotguns in their inventory.

As for the Stingers those had been the bane of anything that flew. The dragons encountered so far simply couldn't avoid the launcher's simple but effective guidance system. For a weapon that had seen little use before it was now a prized and welcoming addition to anyone "out in the wild". Nobody wanted to tempt fate with dragons flying around and many troops were still unnerved with having to fight the things in the first place.

The only troops qualified to handle them however were Marines that were in the air defense MOS so it went without saying that trying to attach them to units all over the place was a bit of a nightmare.

Kane put the piles of paperwork done on his desk, rubbing his temple at the while.

 _Just another day in the Corps...god I'm getting too old for this._

His train of thought was interrupted as a loud knock came from outside his door. Setting the papers down and fixing his uniform Kane turned the music off before allowing the unknown visitor permission to enter. When the door finally opened Kane had been surprised to see it was Lieutenant General Hazama.

"Sir! Good to see you, come in make yourself comfortable."

Hazama simply made his way over to the window Kane had been looking out of, with a stoic face he watched as the coalition presence began to truly take shape outside the building.

"So, it's finally begun hasn't it?"

Kane let out a sigh and stood next to the Hazama. He knew what he had meant, he just hadn't been expecting that statement. Or the question that came next.

"You ever think we just bit off more than we can chew? Japan I mean."

Kane put his hands behind his back as he continued to watch the scene unfold outside after a few minutes of silence he finally went to respond to Hazama's statement. "Sir, your men have been doing well so far, this is their first taste of war. Granted it's against a inferior foe, they have shown discipline and tact where other more experienced armies wouldn't have. Why the doubt sir? Something bothering you?"

Hazama chuckled, but didn't remove his gaze from the scene outside. Both the men watched as pair of Japanese and Marine Cobras took off from the airfield and off into the distance.

Finally the general began to speak again. "No it's not so much that I doubt the men. I just doubt whats going to happen as a result of all of this. A whole new world? Dragons? Ogres? If you had told me my first chance to lead men into battle was going to be against a fantasy world? I would've called you crazy."

Kane chuckled as he took in the statement before responding. "Heh well sir crazy is what Marines do best, but we'd **_all_** be a little crazy if we hadn't pushed through that gate. Both of our nations can only benefit from this, this is **_your_** chance to show the world what you can handle yourselves. This is **_our_** chance to show the world that America is still a symbol of order and peace, I won't lie my country hasn't been in the most favorable light since Iraq."

Hazama laughed as he finally turned to face Kane. "Only in the eyes of those who would undermine you, results speak for themselves Kane and your country has always delivered results. Although many of my men had been at odds with your own, their pride conceals their thanks that you and your men accompanied us."

 ** _Results_** , if Iraq sliding back into inner turmoil and Afghanistan slowly following suit were **_results_** , then Kane must not have been part of those campaigns. Those countries were still safe havens for insurgency and here America was trying to tame another land. Hell Iraq was completely under control by ISIS for the most part.

And Afghanistan was far from over even with the drawdown.

Kane laughed as he was reminded of a report he had reader earlier. "Speaking of results, I take it you've heard about what Recon Team Three has been up to since they left?"

Hazama chuckled, that had actually been the original reason he had came to visit Kane in the first place. "Why yes, one of my junior officers had actually came into my office and told me about it. He wasn't as amused as I was. Then again, I have a feeling he's not too fond of Itami in the first place."

Kane went back to his desk and took a seat on the office chair behind it, Hazama shortly followed after and did the same on one of the lounge couches that had been set up in Kane's office.

"Efforts like that will see us a long way forward in winning hearts and minds here sir. Dragon fighting heroes, Jesus I feel like we're in some sort medieval science fiction fantasy tale."

Earlier when Lieutenant Aldritch had reported in on the progress of one of his tanks he had been anything but thrilled. In truth the young officer had been bracing for a massive ass chewing, instead what he got was praise and laughter.

Kane was pleased, once again his Marines went above and beyond mission parameters. Like their ancestors of old they had defied expectations and all the while sticking to the Corps's core values of honor, courage, and commitment.

Hazama chuckled, in truth he hadn't expected such a report either. Not only had Second Lieutenant Itami's squad worked well with the Marines, but they had also aided the local populace. Secretly he had expected something far worse, but instead had been rewarded much differently for his suspicions.

"Indeed, all of our men have been working well together thus far for the most part. I have to admit Kane at first I honestly felt they would be intimidated and turned away by the wild and erratic behavior of your own. Instead they've been learning from it and even seem to be enjoying it, we could all use such laughter in this new land."

Kane wasn't surprised, many other armies often couldn't understand how U.S. Marines behaved. One minute they'd be dancing to pop music half naked, the next they'd be charging into the worst war had to offer and coming out unscathed. They were professional misfits, every one of them.

Kane smiled as he went to respond to this compliment. "Sir my Marines and I are here to help you, whilst this is **_your_** mission we intend to support you in any way we can. Rest assured my Marines will always be professional, but they'll do it in ways that never cease to amuse me and I'm sure they'll do the same for you and your men."

Hazama gave Kane a warm smile and folded his arms. "Joseph please, enough with calling me sir. We're more than allies here, we're **_friends_**. Call me Kōichirō, and I have no doubt your men will continue to perform well."

The two men both rose from their positions and gave each other a firm handshake, they were both of different rank and military background. Here they were on the same team and in this new uncertain world they had to overcome many trials ahead.

"Well in that case call me Joseph, and I'm glad to be here fighting by your side as well. We'll see this thing through to the end, however long that might be."

Kane made his way back to his desk as Hazama went to take his leave. Just before reaching the door, the general turned around with a warm smile on his face.

"Joseph, if at all possible I'd like that tank platoon to continue working with Second Lieutenant Itami's squad. I'm not sure what that would entail or how things work in your organization. But those two groups have been making waves,

Kane returned the smile. "I'm sure that can be arranged, I'll see what I can do."

With that Hazama took his leave, allowing Kane to resume his work.

"Tanks conducting recon. What a load of bull crap."

The Colonel promptly scoffed before turning his MP3 player back on.

* * *

 **0800 HOURS, ROCHE HILL  
**

"Power! Traversing!"

Kincaid sat upright as he felt the turret begin to traverse over the left side of the tank. His head was the only thing exposed from his sleeping bag and he looked not unlike an eskimo.

With a grumble he unzipped his sleeping bag and began to compress it for storage, he then proceeded to put his glasses and boots back on.

Getting a good stretch in Kincaid hopped down to the tank's back deck and began to open up the various service panels, as they swung open he could see the familiar sight of a jet turbine engine.

Yawning he began to twist various caps off. It had been a while since they checked fluid levels last and they weren't about to roll out without making sure it was feasible to do so. As he went about doing the pre operations checks he saw Wilkes pop his head out of his loader's hatch, a lit cigarette stuck out from between his lips.

"Well good morning sleeping beauty!" Kincaid simply rolled his eyes and went back to work, technically this wasn't his job aboard the tank, but maintenance was a group responsibility. Unlike other crews Kincaid's preferred to share the work load. They were a family, not just four guys crammed in a metal box.

As Kincaid took measurements of the fluids in the transmission and engine he shook his head, they were in need of some filling up. "Hey Rampage, grab the TSO and 15/40, old girl is thirsty again."

Wilkes did a mock salute and went to the bustle rack to grab the cans of much needed fuel, before grabbing them he took one last drag and threw his cigarette off the side of the tank.

As the pair began fueling up their ride, Elton made his way onto the top of the turret. He looked just as haggard and unkempt as Kincaid and Wilkes. Then again a few days without shaving in the field could do that to anyone, not that the tankers cared.

Meanwhile, Benitez had been down below inspecting the track around the tank, with a lit cigarette in his mouth he checked the road wheels and various other components. The last thing the tank needed was to break down and spiral into god knows what, especially if they were going to be playing "Choo choo train" with the locals.

Elton got a good stretch in as he watched Wilkes and Kincaid finish up their maintenance, closing the access doors with loud bangs they threw the empty cans into a trash bag in the bustle rack.

Kincaid wiped his forehead as he went to light up a cigarette, it was a good thing they were heading back. During their trip out the crew had ran through about two packs of cigarette, should they completely run out it would be a bad day for **_everyone_**.

Kincaid took a drag before looking at Elton. "Well bro shes all full, provided Smaug the dragon doesn't make an appearance again we should be all good to head back."

Wilkes lit up another cigarette of his own and added into the exchange. "Bruh don't fucking jinx it, I left Excalibur back at the FOB. We got lucky last time, if he shows up again we might need your family's great hidden power **_Jasper-Kun_**."

Seeing this as a stab at his hobbies Kincaid picked a rock up off the back deck and hurled it at Wilkes's stomach, suddenly the two went from standing to wrestling. As the two continued to rough each other up footsteps approached the tank, Elton glanced over at the source of the noise and said in a hushed whisper.

"Yo heads up Gandalf at our three o clock."

Wilkes and Kincaid stopped and looked over to their right, they both immediately started snickering. When Elton had said Gandalf he had been referring to the grey haired girl that they had seen at Coda Village.

As she made her way to the side of the tank she simply stood there and stared at the three, her staff stood at attention in her right hand.

Wilkes and Kincaid untangled themselves from each other and straightened themselves up, after a few minutes of silence Kincaid finally spoke up.

"Can uh...can we help you?" His question received no answer however as the girl continued to stand there.

Finally after a few moments she finally responded. "What kind of magic do you use?"

Benitez had just made his way over to the where the girl stood when he had heard her question. Like the others atop the tank he began to laugh as well. The girl clearly didn't find their response funny or didn't understand because she had simply stood there with the same blank expression.

Finally Wilkes composed himself and made his way to the top of the turret folding his arms he put his trademark grin on. "Black Magic!"

At the sight of this Elton had merely bust into laughter, being the other black male aboard the tank had made the joke that much funnier. Kincaid sighed before sitting down with his knees dangling over the side of the tank. "It's not magic, it's science and good ole American firepower."

The girl stood there for a while before muttering. "Science? Fire? Power?".

She had understood fire and power, but science was a new word to her. Finally her blue eyes perked up. "Ah yes, fire!"

Suddenly she muttered some incomprehensible words and a spark of flame began to emerge from atop her staff, as this happened all four of the tankers watched with their mouths agape.

Magic did exist in this world and they were seeing it right in front of them.

Benitez suddenly looked like as though an idea popped into his head. Grabbing Kincaid's pack of cigarettes off the side of the tank, he took a cigarette out. He then made his way over towards the girl. Sticking the cigarette's tip into the open flame he lit it and made his way back to the tank.

Flashing a grin and giving her a thumbs up Benitez thanked her the only way he knew how. " _Gracias_ _ _Niña._ " _

Just as the rest of the crew was about to give him a royal ass chewing for his theatrics an older voice followed by the sounds of running cut them off. "Lelei! What have I told you about using magic in such a way!?"

The voice had belonged to a older looking man. With his pointed hat, grey bushy beard, and robes he looked like a character from one of Kincaid's shows. As he finally made his way to the tank the fire atop the girl's staff began to fade away into nothing.

Kincaid promptly deduced that the older gentleman had to be her teacher, a mentor perhaps? Whatever the case was, he and the other tankers had figured out the girl's name so that was a start.

Making his way over to Lelei he stood by her side and took a bow. "Please excuse Lelei she still has much to learn but she means well. I am Cato El Altestan and this is my disciple Lelei La Lalena."

Following her master's formality Lelei bowed as well before turning to face him. "But master thus far we've already used magic to aid in our travels. These warriors clearly understand the basic fundamentals of magic therefore I see no reason to hide our aptitude with it from them. Or did you forget they charged right at a fire dragon and wounded it?"

The old wizard fixed his hat as he looked once over at the strange warriors and their giant iron chariot, stroking his beard with his hand he began to ponder aloud. "That's no excuse, but I can't say I've ever seen warriors who use magic the way they have." Looking at Kincaid Cato continued to stroke his beard as he raised an eyebrow.

"Tell me, who taught you to use such destructive magic? And where does that peculiar chariot come from?"

Elton sat down over the right side of the turret's face as he went to answer the wizard's question. "Look Father Time, it's not magic its _**sci-ence**_. As for who taught us? Fort Benning Georgia, Marine Corps School of Armor. As for the tank, well it's made by General Dynamics. Lima Ohio I think."

Lelei and Cato both grew puzzled looks on their faces, they had certainly never heard of that school or the region this chariot came from. Kincaid raised his eyebrow at Elton. "Nice one asshole, what's next you gonna give them a dog and pony on the tank?"

Elton had merely shrugged before lighting another cigarette. Taking a long drag and letting a cloud of smoke billow out, he finally answered Kincaid's question.

"Hey least I'm honest, so hop off my dick yo." As Kincaid sighed, Elton proceeded to do the honor of introducing his crew to the two magicians. "I'm Corporal Parker Elton, the mixed raced asshole with the glasses here is Corporal Jasper Kincaid. We also go by Honcho and Four Eyes."

Kincaid shot a glare at him as Elton continued to introduce his crew, pointing at Wilkes and then Benitez. "This big savage is Lance Corporal Darian Wilkes Jr. AKA Rampage and the beaner down there is Lance Corporal George Benitez, also known as Little John."

Wilkes and Benitez grinned mischievously as they both took a bow.

Cato and Lelei had never met warriors who jested in such a way, or had such strange names either. Either way their interest had only increased the more they got to know these strange men.

Eventually the tankers noticed a large group approaching the tank, their spirits dropped as they remembered the deal they had made the night prior.

Itami was leading a rather large group over towards the tank his face was stuck in a nervous smile as Rory held his arm by his side. Joining the pair was Shino, Kurokawa, and a pair of nervous looking refugees.

As the group stopped in front of the tank, Itami cleared his throat and stood in front of the tankers. "People of Coda, these warriors have agreed to let you ride with them as we make our way back to our fortress. They will lead our march back, be sure to listen to them throughout the entire trip."

Elton and the rest of the crew began to clamber aboard the tank as they each tried their best to look stoic, they might as well try to make the best of the situation. Amidst the refugees Rory began to giggle as she made her way closer to the side of the tank. She put a finger under her chin as she stared at Kincaid.

"Does it go fast and rough? Or slow and gentle?"

Kincaid gulped and kept his bearing as he went to answer her question. "It goes as fast as it needs to, we're not trying to break track or blow the engine."

Rory only smiled more at his response, she knew she was making him feel uneasy. "Blow?"

Finally Itami stepped in just in the nick of time to save the situation. "Uh yes what he means is the wagon will break!"

Rory simply giggled and performed a superhuman jump. Landing gracefully atop the turret she spun around with her hands on her hips. "Well then, let us depart!"

Itami gave a nod to the group and one by one they began to be helped aboard the tank by the crew. As Kincaid helped Lelei up a gloved hand reached up to him.

"Jasper, a little help?" It was Kurokawa with her rifle slung over her back and helmet on, she looked as though she was having trouble finding her footing.

This was normal however, nobody except tankers themselves knew how to properly mount or dismount a tank.

Kincaid reached down and held her hand in his. With a little bit of strength she was aboard and standing right in front of him atop the front slope. There was a slight moment of silence before Kincaid put on his best smile.

"Didn't think you'd be riding with us Mari, the truck not fun enough for ya?" Watching this scene Wilkes began to snicker and promptly received a gut punch from Shino.

Kurokawa laughed as she adjusted her rifle's sling. "No, I've just never been on a tank before. I've never gotten the chance to so I'd figured why not now?" Kincaid laughed, the irony was everyone but tankers found tanks to be amazing after their first year operating on them.

It was a rough way of life.

Once everyone was aboard Elton began the difficult task of trying to find spots where people wouldn't fall off. After some gear was moved and everyone was situated, the end result was a tracked gypsy wagon.

As the crew began to get to their positions Wilkes approached Kincaid. "Bruh let me sit in the gunner's station, you're more social with these people anyways and I just want to take a nap."

In truth Wilkes didn't want to be anywhere near Rory who just so happened to be sitting behind the loader's hatch.

Kincaid sighed and put a hand on Wilkes's shoulder. "Fine man deal you got me with an extra cigarette though? I ran out."

Wilkes pulled half a pack of cigarettes out of his trouser's cargo pocket and gave it to Kincaid. "Shit they're yours thanks bro."

With that Wilkes clambered down into the turret via the loader's hatch.

Meanwhile, Benitez slid into his drivers station and donned his Comm helmet, he then proceeded to close his hatch. As Kincaid made his way to the top of the turret with Elton he looked back over at the trucks.

The blonde elf girl from before had been staring at the tank. With her head visibly sticking out from the rear of the truck, she looked confused as to what was going on.

Some of the tankers noticed this and waved back with nothing but a thousand yard stare as a response. Eventually she retreated back into the truck leaving the crew to go on with their preparations.

Kincaid clambered down into the loaders hatch and stood atop the seat in the station. To his left Kurokawa and one of the villagers sat with their legs hanging off the side, meanwhile the two magicians had sat towards the back of the turret facing its rear.

One of the other villagers and Shino occupied the right side of the turret next to Elton and finally Rory sat just behind the loader's hatch. As Kincaid went to grab his comm helmet Rory giggled and whispered into his left ear. "Just so you know, I like to go _**fast**_."

Kincaid shook his head and turned to face her as he put his comm helmet on.

"Well Rory just so **_you_** know, I like going fast too. Just not with little girls. Crazy chicks sure, but not little girls."

Rory merely laughed and tapped her fingers on Kincaid's helmet.

She knew full well she wasn't a child.

Kurokawa had seen this all happen out of the corner of her eye, doing her best to not look obvious she kept a straight face and went back to keeping her rifle posted over her sector. Meanwhile, Elton keyed his comm helmet to the rear to address his crew.

"Crew report."

"Driver ready, _vamanos_ lets do this!"

"Gunner kinda ready, can I go back to sleep?"

"Ugh Loader ready and not digging this seating arrangement. Hey don't touch that!"

Elton slammed a glove hand onto the top of the turret. "Little John fire this bad bitch up! Four Eyes! I'm feeling some type of way play me something!"

Kincaid ducked into the turret and connected his MP3 player to the jury rigged audio set up the crew had going next to the internal radios. Scrolling through his list he found something to pump the crew up and played it.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 9: Queens of The Stone Age "Millionare"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

" _Dead blow with the life from the low_  
 _I'll be massive conquistador_ "

Not even moments after the song started the jet turbine engine began to start up. Slow at first, it began to grow louder and louder until a powerful stream of hot air began to blast out the back of the tank.

As this happened the turret began to slowly traverse over the front of the tank with the gun oriented forward. With the four spears still attached to the main gun, the tank looked as though it was ready to ride forward and destroy whoever or whatever came in its path.

As this happened, most of the occupants atop the tank looked startled, something that Kincaid and Elton could only help but laugh at. Meanwhile, Rory looked just as turned on as the tank was, in truth she could **_feel_** the power and killing intent this machine had and she was deeply aroused by it.

" _Give me sword, show me the door_  
 _Metal heavy, shocked at the core_  
 _Gimme toro, gimme some more_ "

As Elton radioed to the rest of RCT3 he gave Benitez the go ahead to drive forward, the engine promptly shifted into drive and began to propel the tank forward. It started to move along the ground slow at first, but as soon as Benitez gave it some more throttle it began to take off down the road.

Twenty miles per hour soon turned into forty five miles per hour as the tank's tracks began to pickup speed. Meanwhile the occupants on top held on as the tank began to move with the terrain features, how could something so big move so fast?

Kincaid ducked into the tank and lowered his goggles over his eyes, as he did so he promptly lit another cigarette. As his head came out of his loaders hatch he felt two hands dig deep into the back of his shoulders.

Rory.

Kincaid couldn't turn his head around to see what exactly was going on, but a nervous Elton confirmed over comm exactly how the scene was playing out. Needless to say even Wilkes had woken up once he heard the specifics.

From the moment they had departed Rory was absolutely red, the feelings of overwhelming battle ecstasy were completely taking hold of her. Even if they weren't engaged with the enemy she could still **_feel_** just how much bloodshed and destruction this machine and its crew had carried out.

Elton could see her breathing heavily even with how fast they were going, her hair flowing in the wind as she attempted to keep her composure. In truth part of him found it incredibly hot in a strange off shoot kind of way, he wouldn't be a Marine if his head was 100% stable. Shaking his head he tried to dismiss the notion.

Meanwhile, Kurokawa had been watching the scene over her shoulder, she was anything but amused.

It was like Kincaid wasn't even trying to keep her off him, like he **_enjoyed_** it. Here they were on a road march and Kincaid was enjoying a front row seat to some kind of sick show. Just as she was about to turn around and break it up, she stopped. Kincaid had promptly grabbed Rory's hands and removed them from his shoulders.

Whilst maintaining his grip on both her wrists he shook his head and mouthed something to her. A look of curiosity on his face.

"Are you okay?" Rory ceased and retracted her hands back. With a smile she placed them on the back of the loader's hatch and continued to enjoy the ride.

Kurokawa promptly turned around went back to covering the tank's left side, she felt embarrassed. Here she was mentally scolding him for a simple misunderstanding. Then she felt even more embarrassed, why was she even angry in the first place? Why should she care? It's not like she was jealous.

Kurokawa lowered her rifle slightly as she started thinking more. In truth all she wanted to do was get to know him better, his personality could swing far left or far right depending on the situation. Were all Marines like this? Then there was his bad dream, it was as if he was reliving some traumatic life event.

Either way she couldn't help but feel slightly interested. Kincaid wasn't hard to talk to, but there was certainly more to him and his fellow Marines than they were letting on.

She shook her head and raised her rifle. As RCT3's medic it was her duty to make sure the men under her were medically and mentally safe. That was her **_job_** , nothing more. JSDF or not she had a duty to fulfill.

Suddenly she felt a hand tap her back and spun around to see who it was, it was Kincaid.

With his black goggles covering his eyes and his balaclava pulled, up he looked like some sort of special forces soldier. As she raised an eyebrow in question at him, he gave her a thumbs up. He had simply been making sure she was okay, Kurokawa smiled and gave him a thumbs up back before turning back around.

Her smile didn't fade.

As the tank continued to take the winding turns the rest of RCT3's vehicles did their best to keep up. A few of the drivers were still having trouble accepting the fact the tank was deceptively fast.

After a few uneventful hours the vast rocky terrain began to turn into lush green hills and forests, the convoy was beginning to enter familiar territory. It wouldn't be too long before they made it to Alnus.

Throughout the ride Shino had been hooping and hollering she was having an absolute blast. This had made the rest of the occupants atop the tank feel better. They were **_all_** having fun, atop this grand iron chariot they too felt invincible like nothing could face them.

It was no wonder the Marine tankers acted so bold.

Elton reached into the turret and pulled out a map, studying the basic terrain features he deduced that they were most definitely in allied controlled territory. As if to answer his theory a pair of AV-8B Harriers passed overhead.

The tank commander whistled loud enough for Kincaid to hear over the internal net as he watched the jets screech by. "Jesus christ we already have air support?"

Kincaid shrugged. "Looks that way. They're fucking jump jets though, don't really need much to get em up and out."

As Elton watched the two VTOL jump jets bank around for another pass he waved at them whether or not they saw it was beyond him. Keying his comm helmet forward he went to address the rest of the convoy.

"RCT3 Actual this is Horsemen Four be advised we're in safe territory. Gonna go ahead and pull the tank over, deals' a deal over."

Itami promptly came back over the net, "Hey thanks Horsemen Four, glad to have you leading us back. You're right about the deal over." As the tank came to a stop Elton and Kincaid looked forward a few meters. They had stopped in front of a Marine checkpoint.

* * *

 **U.S. MARINE CHECKPOINT ALPHA**

Van Hauser was starting to get bored, **_very_** bored. His squad had been posted at this intersection hours ago and since then not a damn thing happened. Sure there was a herd of some weird looking cattle that had came through they even had some refugees come through.

None of that counted as "interesting" though.

"Interesting" was being attacked and repelling a vastly superior foe, "Interesting" was at least seeing some cute elves everyone had been raving about and "interesting" was at least seeing some friendly forces.

His squad had received none of that instead they had been posted around and on their Humvees for three hours waving people through or occasionally conducting the odd wagon search.

Van Hauser had brought his trump card however. As he lounged in the passenger seat of his up armored Humvee he was busy tapping away at his Gameboy, _Pokemon_ to be exact.

If there was one thing being in the Marines had taught him, it was that there was plenty of time to sit around doing nothing.

That meant that any Marine who had any brains would bring something to keep himself occupied, those who didn't would slowly find themselves losing their minds. In this situation Van Hauser had thought ahead and brought his old Gameboy to keep himself entertained.

The only problem was that he had run out power for it hours ago and now he found himself staring out his window absolutely bored. Suddenly Boyd's voice snapped him out of his daze.

"Hey William looks like we got company!"

The marksman had been posted atop the Humvee with his M39 EMR. Next to Boyd the squad's working dog Davey panted happily as he enjoyed the beautiful day. A pure bred German Shephard, Davey had been invaluable in checking caravans that had came up to the checkpoint.

As Van Hauser sighed as he exited the vehicle, fetching his kevlar and M4 on the way out. As the lieutenant donned his Kevlar he looked at the top of his Humvee at Boyd. The marksman was prone atop of the vehicle sighting through his M39, he had forgone his usual kevlar setting it down next to him in favor of the issued woodland MARPAT boonie cover.

Had this been anyone else Van Hauser would've chewed the Marine out for improper PPE* as well as lack of utilizing rank. But Boyd and Van Hauser went back far, Afghanistan far. Though they always tried to utilize proper chain of command when not out in the field or when around other higher ups however, fraternization was a very serious if often hazy offense.

" _Jesus Christus_ Boyd, what is it this time? Another refugee caravan? I swear if it is I'm coming up there and shoving that rifle up your ass."

Not removing his eye from the scope Boyd laughed. "Nah even better, actually if you look down the road you can see it now."

The rest of Van Hauser's squad had been posted near one of the other Humvees, when they saw it too, they mirrored their squad leader's open mouthed look of shock.

Somehow a lone M1A1 Abrams had snuck up on them and was sitting just down the road, they hadn't even heard the damn thing until it was practically right in front of them. Van Hauser wasn't surprised, he had worked with the tanks before. For something so big to move so fast and without making too much noise was unsettling to say the least, friendly or not.

Of course it wasn't so much the tank that had garnered the attention of a few raised eyebrows, but the people strewn about the top of it.

The Marines watched as two "Magicians", some sort of Gothic girl, two locals, and finally two female JSDF soldiers exited over the front slope of the tank and back around to its rear. Soon the tank began to slowly creep forward and over towards the checkpoint, behind it were three JSDF vehicles.

As the tank lurched to a stop one of the tankers slightly removed his comm helmet and yelled down at Van Hauser over the roar of the tank's engine.

"Hey, which way to Alnus?!"

Van Hauser simply pointed to the road behind him.

"Yut, thanks!"

Van Hauser and his squad all gave the tank thumbs up and loud "Yut" before it began to coast down the road a trail of dust kicking up behind it.

The rest of the vehicles soon followed in tow, as one of the last JSDF trucks passed, Van Hauser swore he saw the Gothic girl waving at him with a mischievous smile. Davey had been fine until _**she**_ had passed that girl had given him the creeps making made him whimper and hide behind his handler back on the ground.

Waving back with a nervous smile Van Hauser sighed as they all finally left. "Fucking tankers."

Boyd laughed as he went back to sighting down his rifle's scope. "That's not what you said during Operation Linebacker."

Van Hauser picked a rock up off the ground and chucked it at Boyd before heading back into the Humvee. Not even moments later one of the radios came alive with noise.

"Checkpoint Alpha this is Alnus Main come in over."

Van Hauser sighed and picked up one the handsets for the radio. "Send it for Checkpoint Alpha."

"Be advised Alpha one of the fixed wing flights saw a large concentration of armed foot mobiles heading your way from the East, looks like they have some carriages with them over."

Van Hauser heard the sound of rifles being racked and M2's being charged to the rear, his boys had all heard the transmission. They were ready, Van Hauser gave a sinister chuckle before responding.

"Tango Alnus Main, Alpha copies all."

As he set the handset down he yelled out to his squad. "Alright boys, set out the good silverware! We're expecting guests!"

Hearing the sounds of weapons being readied, Davey howled. He knew a fight when it was coming.

Finally something interesting was about to happen.

 **XXXXXXX**

As the convoy made its way down the road to the FOB, the sloping green hills and forests began to be replaced with a large sea of brown. This was where the initial fighting had taken place. The various refugees inside the trucks looked out the windows in shock. Everywhere they looked they saw massive iron chariots of various shapes and sizes.

Some looked just like the one they had rode upon before, others were smaller and had smaller "Snouts". Accompanying them would be large groups of men dressed much like the warriors the refugees had been traveling with.

Meanwhile, In the skies above strange whooping noises could be heard with strange flying chariots pass by accompanying the noise. Just who where these men that had brought them here? What strange and terrifying weapons had they yet to unveil?

As the trucks continued down the main stretch a large fortress began to appear over the horizon. It was massive, made of stone, and designed in such a way that made all other castles pale in comparison. As it grew closer the refugees could see various signs appear on the sides of the road.

They were warnings to any trespassers.

* * *

 _ **You are now entering Coalition territory. Unauthorized personnel are asked to leave or wait to be processed. Resistance will be met with force.  
**_

* * *

These warriors were not of the trifling sort.

Suddenly the convoy entered through a massive gate, as two large doors closed behind it many refugees including the three peculiar girls felt one thought cross their mind.

This was going to be their new home.

* * *

 **Jargon/Lingo/Acronyms**

 **PPE-Personal Protective Equipment**

 **MARSOC-Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command**


	11. Enjoy Your Stay

**A big thing that had bothered me in my previous attempt at this story, was the interaction between characters. I felt like there merely hadn't been enough of it between the original cast and the tankers.**

 **So I had to make this a filler chapter of sorts, _very_ filler. That been said, now that the number of chapters is substantially shorter, we'll be off to Italica _a lot_ sooner and at no expense in regards to pacing. **

**As for the timeline? I searched high and low for some effective way to show the time that had past as well as try to incorporate major holidays (I noticed that neither the Manga or the Anime showed any sign of holidays having passed except for a lone Christmas tree).**

 **Then thanks to TMDF-Artyom, I found out what the time difference was and everything fell into place from there. So big shout out to him.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Enjoy Your Stay**

" _Hell these are Marines. Men like them held Guadalcanal and took Iwo Jima. Baghdad ain't Shit."_

Marine Major General John F. Kelly

 **TWO WEEKS SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 1100 HOURS, CHECKPOINT ALPHA**

Van Hauser directed his men to defensive positions they were expecting guests and wouldn't be caught dead unprepared for them. His Humvee was directed to the left side of the road while the other one was directed to the right.

Meanwhile Boyd remained on the top of Van Hauser's Humvee, his eye glued to the scope. If things went south he'd be the deciding factor into how long the fire fight would go. Boyd was a Georgia boy born and raised, years of hunting in the forests of his home had shaped him into a fine marksman. It had also shaped him into the squad's loud mouth.

The other Marines took up defensive positions behind the Humvees, the enemy may not have been in possession of firearms, but no one wanted to test their luck against an arrow. It would be a bad day for anyone involved to have one of those land in an unarmored piece of flesh.

Meanwhile, Van Hauser, Davey, and two other Marines stood their post in the middle of the road. They would be the ones conducting the search. Between Davey's keen nose and the two Marines' 870s, they were prepared for any eventuality.

Suddenly Boyd yelled down from his position atop Van Hauser's Humvee. "Boss I got eyes on! Looks like fifteen guys and two wagons, they're definitely armed! Not seeing any uniforms might be bandits or local militia!"

Vanhauser sighted in with his M4's ACOG, sure enough, he could begin to make out a large group. Two horse drawn wagons were slowly making their way up the road with armed men surrounding them. Van Hauser radioed to the rest of his squad via his helmet's boom mic.

"Alright boys look sharp stay low and hold your fire, I'll handle this. If they try anything stupid you have full permission to gun them the fuck down."

The rest of the men rogered up as rounds were racked into chambers and optics sighted in. For a while everything was quiet as the Marines fell back into old habits. They were focused, in their element. They had to be ready at a moment's notice should the situation go far left or far right.

Eventually the unidentified group made its way to Van Hauser's position and stopped within a short distance. Van Hauser looked over the group; rugged looking, no uniformity, armed with the usual medieval weapons and sinister.

Amateurs.

They also looked surprised and this was likely their first time ever seeing the strange new army rumored to have entered their world. Most of the group looked at the Humvees and the men surrounding them with suspicion, they knew this was a road block.

Slightly intelligent amateurs.

Van Hauser and many other Marines had been in the business of fighting non-uniformed enemies for a long time and everything about this group reeked of banditry. Eventually a large man emerged from the group and made his way over to Van Hauser.

Dressed in various furs and wearing a dark blue robed uniform, he carried a large ornate sword at his hip. With his unkempt facial hair and purple bandanna he radiated with violence. This was a veteran, a natural leader on the battlefields of his world. No doubt he was the leader of this rabble.

He was most certainly not phased by the strange warriors in front of him or their strange chariots either. Little did he know how big a mistake that was. Eventually he made his way up to Van Hauser and stopped a few feet in front of him. The large warrior stared down at Van Hauser, he dwarfed the Marine by a few feet easily.

None of this intimidated Van Hauser or his men, many of them had fought the worst the Middle East had to offer. From renegade soldiers to well trained fanatics they had faced them all and lived to share the experience gained with their fellow Marines.

Some including Van Hauser were even "Marjah Marines", grizzled veterans from a long and bloody battle in Afghanistan. That been said if the leader of this group of combatants though he could intimidate these Marines he had another thing coming

Without losing his bearing and maintaining a stern warrior's look of his own, Van Hauser faced the giant. His gloved hands gripped his carbine tightly. It was a good thing he had studied the Special Region's language otherwise this situation could go any number of ways.

"Lieutenant William Van Hauser, U.S. Marines. This is a military checkpoint, any particular reason why you and your armed entourage are coming through here?"

The large warrior continued to glare down at the small man in front of him before putting on a smile.

"I am Morlon Co Solidus, my men and I hale from Coda Village. We have heard of strange men entering our lands using strange magic and weaponry, but I didn't think you could speak our language."

The large warrior looked at the three strange chariots and the men near them before continuing. "My warrior's instincts tell me you must be them, well I can assure you we do not wish to experience what the other foolish armies have. During your recent arrival and subsequent annihilation of the Empire's forces, many bandit brigades and other ruffians have been out terrorizing the country side. We are merely returning to Argus after engaging one such brigade."

Van Hauser wasn't buying it, back during his tour in Afghanistan it wasn't uncommon for local insurrectionists to try this very same tactic. They'd pose as some local militia defending their lands against the Taliban and would give some sob story to a military checkpoint. Usually this would end in a VBIED* going off or the "militia" in question to get granted passage through only to turn right around and be found fighting that same checkpoint at a later time.

Van Hauser knew something was amiss and aimed to get to the bottom of it.

It also didn't help that Coda was officially declared as uninhabited, one of the recon teams and its tank escort had overseen its evacuation. Van Hauser himself had heard it over one of the radio channels.

Which meant this man was lieing. Still, SOP was SOP and neither Morlon nor his men were going anywhere.

"Well that's all well and good. I can understand the right for self defense, but before I let you through there's just one thing..." Van Hauser glanced around the side of the tall warrior and looked at the two wagons before returning his gaze to Morlon.

"We have a full search order in effect. I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to search the contents of the wagons over there. If you could have your men gather off to the side we'll make this quick and send you on through."

At this proposition, Morlon's face seemed to lose some of its friendly luster. This was all Van Hauser needed in order to confirm his suspicions. Davey's growling at both the men and the carriages in particular certainly wasn't helping the situation either.

"Loo-tenant Van House-er was it? There's nothing but food and supplies in those wagons, I humbly ask that you let us through without delay. Many of our kinsmen at Argus are without needed rations we must hurry in order to bring these to them. We have been lucky to even get these off the bandits."

Van Hauser noticed some of Morlon's men looked a little antsy like they had something to hide. He knew as this was going on, his own men had their weapons leveled at the group and they were ready to fire at a moment's notice.

Meanwhile, Davey began to tug on his handler's leash as he whined at one of the lead wagons. Something inside it had really caught set off his senses and he really wanted to know what it was. Noticing this, Van Hauser kept control of the situation.

"I'm sorry, but orders are orders. Now if you could please gather your men over to the side I promise to make this as quick as possible in order to get you back home, you have my word."

Just as Morlon was about to argue further a woman's cry came from one of the wagons. A young woman with dark black hair had stuck her face out of the lead wagon's tarp, with tears streaming down her face she looked at Van Hauser and cried out.

"Please help us!"

As she did so, the man who was behind the reigns for that wagon reached around and shoved her back inside. Just as Van Hauser returned his gaze back to Morlon he watched as a large sword was held high in the air.

Suddenly the bark of a rifle firing and the ping of metal on metal echoed loudly as the sword was ejected from Morlon's hand. He barely had time to register a look of surprise on his face before Van Hauser let loose a burst from his M4, Morlon's face erupted into a bloody mess as the 5.56mm rounds tore through it like a hot knife through butter.

Van Hauser finished Morlon off with a sharp kick to the abdomen sending the large warrior topping over. Not skipping a beat he yelled through his kevlar's boom mic.

" _Scheisse_! Squad open fire! Waste these assholes!"

It had been like a switch was thrown, suddenly the sounds of rifle and machine gun fire filled the air. Many of the bandits tried to charge forward only to get torn apart. Others had merely stood there dumbfounded, they hadn't expected their fellows to be killed off with such haste.

Meanwhile, Boyd worked with the precision of a trained marksman from his position. Bowmen dropped like flies as 7.62mm rounds popped each and every one of their skulls like ripe melons.

The horses had to be put down as well. During the fight they had began to panic to such an extreme that the decision was made to neutralize them before they could possibly hurt the Marines or the civilians.

It was over as quickly as it had began and by the time the last bandit was killed Van Hauser was already instructing his men to close the gap. After all, the mission of the Marine rifle platoon was to close with and destroy the enemy using fire and maneuvering.

Humvees roared to life as they began to form a perimeter around the wagons, infantry moving between them filling any gaps. Van Hauser and two other Marines to his right and left began to approach the lead wagon, weapons raised and ready for anything.

As they got closer Van Hauser motioned to the two shotgun Marines to take point with Davey. When the trio made their way to the wagon one of the Marines thumbed his shotgun's side mounted light, climbed up, and opened the tarp.

Meanwhile, Davey continued to whimper.

The Marine promptly exited out faced and faced his platoon commander a look of shock in his eyes.

"Uh sir, you might want to take a look at this!"

Van Hauser slung his carbine and promptly made his way over to the wagon. Climbing aboard he opened the tarp, what had greeted him inside had sent him into a seething rage.

Inside in the wagon and cramped together were tired and scared women of various ages, but it wasn't so much that as it was their condition that had made Van Hauser angry. Dressed in rags and adorned with collars confirmed one important thing.

They were slaves, "spoils of war". It stood against everything the free world represented and it made the lieutenant's blood boil.

The bandits had most likely killed the men of the village and had taken these women to do unmentionable things. Van Hauser stared at the women wide eyed for a moment before training began to kick in. Slinging his carbine and slowly removing his Kevlar revealing his ashy blonde high and tight haircut he reached a gloved hand out to the woman who had yelled out in the first place.

"Lieutenant William Van Hauser United States Marines, we're here to help you. It's okay now, you're safe..."

As Van Hauser got a closer look at the woman he began to notice some things training certainly hadn't prepared him for.

For starters her ears were the most obvious thing, sticking out from her shoulder length jet black hair on either side of her head were pointed feline ears. Then there were her eyes. Feline, dagger, dark green, the same ones piercing the lieutenant's own blue eyes.

She wasn't human, not by a long shot. Before Van Hauser could find his words she threw herself at him, sobbing all the while as she started

With her arms wrapped around his neck tightly she began to sob. "Thank you so much! These men they attacked our village in the middle of the night, they killed our loved ones and set the village to the torch. Had you not shown up, I shudder at the thought of what would have happened next."

So that's what had gotten Davey's attention, a cat girl.

Van Hauser tried to keep order of the situation and simply held her close, it was a new feeling to him. To be looked at as a hero, that was something he hadn't felt in a long long time.

With the young woman firmly holding his hand the Lieutenant opened the tarp and let the light of the sun fill the wagon. Meanwhile, the female captives slowly made their way to the front to look at their saviors and the freedom they brought with them.

Strange men adorned in green outfits and brandishing black staffs began to make their way over to the wagon. Most of them had warm smiles others were shocked to see the women in such a state of abuse.

And a lot of them were probably just as young as the girls were.

Behind the warriors the women could see strange large tan iron chariots that belched smoke and rumbled everywhere they went.

As Van Hauser and the woman exited the wagon he began to yell out orders and soon Navy Corpsmen began to look over the women and administer aid where needed. Meanwhile, various other Marines began to help the women out of the wagons, many found themselves being hugged and kissed on the cheeks. They were heroes today all of them.

Meanwhile, Davey had been sniffing at the strange cat girl and cocked his head in curiosity. Her smell said cat, but her appearance said human. It had completely thrown the dog's instincts out of sync.

Van Hauser grabbed his Kevlar off the lead wagon and led the cat woman over to one of the waiting Corpsmen.

"Hey Martinez take care of this one I need to go radio this mess back to main side."

Just as Van Hauser began to remove the woman's hand he felt her grip tighten, even through his glove he could the strength behind it.

Van Hauser sighed as he looked her in the eyes a second time. "Ma'am I need to go talk to my superiors, Martinez here will take care of you from here on. If you have any further questions or need anything else one of the Marines running around can more than likely help you."

The woman looked at a confused Martinez then back at Van Hauser, her grip didn't ease up in the slightest.

"Will you return?"

Van Hauser smiled and put his other hand over hers. "Yeah, someone's gotta oversee this mess."

At this response the woman smiled revealing her fangs ever so slightly, slowly her grip loosened and she allowed Van Hauser to head back to his Humvee.

"Now that's how we do it in Georgia! Well, the shooting that is, not the cross-species flirting."

Van Hauser groaned as he looked at the source of the joke. Resting against the scant shade provided by the side of the Humvee Boyd lay there with his M39 resting across his lap. The young Corporal perked his boonie's bill up, exposing his grin as he continued.

"Sorry bout the fancy trick shot on old boy figured you wanted to be the one who offed the sunuva bitch."

Van Hauser unslung his carbine and leaned it against the side of his Humvee, setting his Kevlar down next to it he opened the Humvee's door and looked over his shoulder at Boyd.

"Yeah real fancy shooting Boyd. As for cross-species flirting what about cross family flirting? I mean isn't that how ya'll do things in the south?"

Boyd merely chuckled and lowered his boonie back down over his eyes."Heh, asshole."

Van Hauser laughed and took a seat in the driver's chair, grabbing one of the handhelds off the dashboard radio he began to radio back to Alnus base.

"Alnus Main, this is Checkpoint Alpha. Engaged and destroyed 15 foot mobiles, they attacked us first. Be advised we have approximately two wagons full of female captives, no major injuries so far, however they are definitely malnourished. How do you want us to proceed from here over?"

Van Hauser waited several moments before the CP responded.

"Checkpoint Alpha, Alnus Main copies all. How many civilians do you have at this time over?"

Van Hauser shot a quick glance out the window and did a quick estimation.

"Enough to fill a Seven Ton over." Several moments went by before the CP responded again.

"Solid Copy Alpha, we're sending some trucks that way ETA twenty mikes." Vanhauser sighed in relief, it would be out of his hands soon enough.

Before he could roger back to Alnus main, the net once again came alive.

"Oh and Alpha, Happy Birthday. Be advised we've finally got the timezone difference between here and back home. Current time back home is about sixteen hundred hours tenth November."

Van Hauser had completely forgotten, with all the operating and missions he hadn't been keeping track of the date. Today was in fact the Marine Corps' birthday and with this checkpoint search having been such a success? He had just been put in a good mood.

"Tango Alnus Main, Happy Birthday to you too, Alpha out."

Van Hauser fumbled through his assault pack and pulled out a small speaker, plugging his MP3 into it, he searched for one of his classics. Finding a song of his liking he pressed play and let the jazz fill the air.

* * *

 **Van Hauser's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 10: Heinz Kiessling "Maraschino Moon"  
**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

"God damnit not this classical jazzy bullshit again!"

"Shutup Boyd."

Van Hauser set the handheld back into its cradle and leaned his head back against his seat, another smooth engagement. He glanced at the scene in front of him and took a moment to let his pride swell up. His men were moving around helping the females in any way they could, administering aid even sharing rations if they could.

His Marines were being looked at as saviors, for some of them the Special Region had been their first real taste of combat. For the veterans this was their first time actually being the "good guys" for once. No more political bullshit, no more propaganda, and no more one sided ROE's.

There was a clear enemy and the Allies were here to fight them and maybe help make this new world a better place while they were at it. Van Hauser got a good stretch in before exiting the Humvee, slamming the armored door behind him he shot a glance at Boyd.

"Hey Boyd, Happy Birthday Marine. Now lets go you can rest all you want once we're relieved here."

Boyd let out a loud groan and slung his rifle as he got up. "No shit? Happy Birthday man, hey how's about a birthday smoke?"

Van Hauser donned his kevlar and slung his carbine, once that was done he rolled his eyes and fished a pack of cigarettes out of his cargo pocket. Tossing them over to Boyd he adjusted his flak before hearing him cry out.

"Aw cmon man not this German shit again!"

Van Hauser merely chuckled and began making his way back over towards the relief efforts. There would be more than one celebration going down today.

He also hadn't figured out that cat girl's name.

"Hey William?"

"What?"

"What was that guy's name anyways?"

"Morlon Co Solidus? Why?"

"More like Solid Moron, what a fucking chump."

"Boyd?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

* * *

 **1200 HOURS, CAMP ALNUS**

Kincaid felt the tank lurch to a stop as they made their way inside the main gate. Not skipping a beat he removed his comm helmet and balaclava exposing his greasy unkempt hair. The crew inside the turret would have to exit out in order to ground guide the tank over to the fuel farm and then to the waiting motor pool.

Before he got out Kincaid gave Wilkes a good kick to the back of his plate carrier.

"Rise and shine sleeping beauty, we're home."

Wilkes let out a long yawn and made his way out of the gunner's station, removing his comm helmet all the while. As the three tankers from inside the turret made their way down and to the front slope, the driver's hatch slowly popped up and slid to the right.

"So how was my driving? Questions? Comments? Concerns?" Benitez said as he popped his head out of his driver's station.

Kincaid laughed and gave him a playful smack on the comm helmet as he slid down the front slope. "Not bad bro lets see if you can get us to the fuel farm without running anyone over."

Wilkes made his way around to the back right of the tank while Kincaid and Elton made their way to the front, a loud crank was heard as the parking brake was disengaged and the tank once again began to lumber forward slowly. As the crew made their way to the fuel farm they noticed many strange looks and cheers being thrown their way.

As it turned out, many of the Marines on the base had heard of the tank that stood up to a dragon and gave it such a good beating it had to run away scared. In a way the tank and its crew had actually lived up to an old Corp's recruiting commercial about Marines fighting giant monsters, the giant claw marks on the front right side of its turret was proof of this.

As the tank made its way through the winding HESCO paths an LVSR* with a massive fuel tank on the back of it came into view, this was where Itami's trucks peeled off to the left and over towards the Japanese side of the base.

As they drove off Kincaid and the other tankers gave them a wave and continued on towards the refuel truck and as the tank got closer one of the refuel Marines gave a whistle as he came out of the LVSR's cabin.

"Sweeeet Jesus! You tankers fans of big game hunting?"

Elton and Kincaid raised an eyebrow, the way the Marine had said it made it sound like as if they hadn't been the first to get into a scrap with the local fauna. As the tank lurched to a stop just off to the side of the truck Kincaid and Wilkes made their way over to the back of the tank and opened up the fuel caps atop the back deck.

While they did this Elton conversed with the refuel Marine as he went to work. "Tankers? What did the other guys come back dinged up too?"

The refuel Marine extended a large hose over to the back deck of the tank. As Kincaid got a hold of it he flipped a switch on a panel and let the fuel flow through the hose.

"Nah not like that! Two of the other ones came back with some strange critters they shot strewn about on the back of their turrets said they were gonna cook em up later."

The young Marine paused to get a good stretch in."That fails in comparison to you guys though, how big was that dragon?"

So they **_were_** famous, it didn't surprise Elton. Tankers always had a way of becoming the center of attention wherever they went, the giant seventy ton behemoths they drove only made up half of how they claimed their fame.

Elton rolled his eyes if there was anyone who did some hunting while they were out, it had to be Johnson and Parker. Southern boys to the end, Elton sighed before responding to the Marine's question.

"He was fucking huge bro and tough as fuck too, took a few 120's. Fucked him up pretty good though, I doubt he's going to live for much longer."

The Marine chuckled as he monitored the fuel levels on the panel. "Shit fixed wings have been coming and going all day, I reckon they're looking for that big bitch. His days are numbered that's for sure."

As Elton laughed he looked around the base. They had only been gone a few days and it looked like as if it had just evolved further over night, they already had air assets and large concrete buildings jutted up everywhere. The engineers had to have been slaving away day and night, same shit different station.

When they were finally done refueling the Marine who had fueled them up gave the crew their fuel consumption and asked for a picture in front of the tank. Smiling enthusiastically Elton held the Marine's phone and snapped a photo of him between Kincaid and Wilkes. Before they departed the Marine yelled at them.

"Hey! Happy Marine Corps Birthday Devils!"

Elton raised an eyebrow as he looked at the others. Since they got here they had no idea what the time difference was back home, someone must have finally linked back to the outside world and received the good word.

Throwing his arms around Wilkes and Kincaid Elton smiled and yelled.

"Yo it's the Corps's Birthday! Happy Birthday guys!"

Wilkes and Kincaid merely chuckled, motivated or not the birthday was still a thing of pride in the Corps. It also meant there was usually an amazing feast. That would explain why the other two tanks had gone hunting.

As they came to a large gate Elton and Kincaid noticed a large billboard hanging from atop it. As they got closer, they couldn't help but laugh at the artwork. Evidently one of the other tankers had decided to go the extra mile and actually draw up some sort of insignia for the platoon. In this case it had been their four tanks with each of the biblical Four Horsemen of The Apocalypse riding atop each.

With the jagged letters underneath, the piece wasn't too bad. Except for the piss poor spelling.

* * *

 _ **HOME OF THE FOUR HORSEMEN. ACE IN THE HOL**_

* * *

Kincaid laughed and shook his head as they made their way through the gate. "Fucking motards didn't even spell hole right!"

"Ironic considering we're always chasing that shit!"

"Preach!"

As the tank and its crew made its way into the motor pool, the first they noticed was that this was not just their home, but the home of a few others as well. Arranged in neat rows were various other Marine armored vehicles that had came through the gate. From LAVs to AAVs, all of the MEU's armored fighting vehicles could be found here, ready to move out at a moments notice.

As the crew made their way past the hustle and bustle brought about by the crews of the other vehicles they finally saw the rest of their platoon. Arranged in a row against a large HESCO barrier sat the rest of their platoon's tanks and the M88.

Two of them sat with their guns over the front and their hatches opened ready to move whenever the go order was given. The last one however had it's gun over the right side. As Kincaid and his crew got closer they began to see why. Hanging from the tank's gun tube were four skinned carcasses their bodies being drained of blood into makeshift buckets put underneath them.

Spotting an empty spot at the end of the line, Kincaid and Elton directed the tank over towards it. As the tank pivot steered in place Elton gave a signal to Benitez to stop the tank and once that was done he went over to Kincaid, they still had maintenance to do before they could relax.

"Jasper make sure you guys walk track and do track tension*. Do all the other small bullshit after ops* too, quicker we get it done the quicker we can relax. I'm gonna go talk to the XO."

Kincaid did a mock salute with his tongue out and started climbing aboard the tank to grab the tools. Wwhile he did this Elton made his way over towards where the rest of the tankers were. Two large rectangular buildings served as their housing quarters, one for the enlisted and one for Aldritch.

Soon the enlisted door burst open as the rest of the tankers made their way over to Kincaid and the others, their brothers had finally returned to them. They surrounded Kincaid and Wilkes with warm smiles and hands outstretched in greeting. There would be a lot of stories to be told.

Elton approached the XO's door sighed and gave it a firm knock. "Sir, it's Corporal Elton!"

After a few moments Aldritch's voice came from within. "You're good!"

Elton mentally prepared himself and opened the door into Aldritch's quarters. As he entered the first thing he noticed was Johnson off to the side leaning against a map on the wall, he looked absolutely pissed. The bald heavyset sergeant chuckled, his regulation mustache almost jiggling as his trademark southern draw came loud and proud.

"Well Well, if it isn't our resident dragon slayer. Good to see you Elton." Reaching his hand out he shook the corporal's hand before continuing. "Crew alright?"

Elton took his gloves off and put them in the cargo pocket of his FROG trouser's, letting his dirty calloused hands get some much needed air.

"Yeah they're good, tanks' a little dinged up and Kincaid got a nasty headache. Other besides that we're gucci."

Johnson went back to folding his arms and looked back at Aldritch. "Well talk about a close call eh sir?"

Aldritch raised an eyebrow before sighing and shaking his head the mountain of paperwork in front of him had clearly been taxing him up till now.

"Look Johnson I understand, truth be told I don't like the way things have been going anymore than you do. These calls aren't mine to make and until told otherwise we'll just have to make the most of it. We're Marines foremost wouldn't be the first time we've had to adapt and overcome."

Johnson shook his head and grabbed his eight point cover off a filing cabinet.

"Just voicing my concerns that's all, we got lucky this time. Next time who knows what might happen." The sergeant opened the door and paused before turning around with a thumbs up.

"Anyways I need to go check on the meat. We're gonna be having a birthday feast tonight!"

Aldritch nodded as Johnson made his way to the door, leaving the lieutenant and Elton alone to discuss the after action report.

"I never thought my first time leading men into battle was going to be against goddamn dragons and psuedo roman soldiers. Your stunt with the dragon was a close call Elton, were this operation up to me I would've never let the tanks accompany these recon teams. LAV's would've been a better choice."

He paused and rubbed his eyes in frustration. "Jesus, this trip to Japan was supposed to be a simple training operation, now here we are at war. The company was set to disband at the end of this year and now we've been reactivated."

Elton took his plate carrier off and set it down next to a steel folding chair. As he took his seat he winced as the sore feeling of wearing his flak for hours at a time started to come back.

"Sir permission to speak freely?"

Aldritch went over to a cooler and took two bottles of water out, tossing one to Elton he returned to his seat. "Granted."

Elton took a long swig of the cool beverage savoring every gulp. After he had completely finished it he let out a satisfied breathe of air before he began his speech.

"Sir you're doing fine, **_everyone_** here is at their wits end. Truth be told sir, Lieutenant Itami and the civilians probably wouldn't have survived had we not been there in the first place. I mean, yeah. I agree that the tanks breaking off with the teams was a pretty piss poor move everyone got back alive though."

He took another gulp before continuing.

"It's done, it's in the past sir and we won't have to do some dumb ass shit like that again. As for us being here well least we're getting paid. Kincaid's gonna bitch that we're gonna be here for a while, but he'll get over it. Shit I secretly think he likes being here."

Aldritch looked over some paperwork and looked back at Elton with a grim look on his face, the type of look an officer made when he's about to give bad news. Elton raised an eyebrow and felt like a stone had been dropped into his stomach.

"Sir? Bad news I'm guessing?"

Aldritch got up from his chair and stood over by his window, gazing at the Marines outside, **_his_** Marines. Elton turned in his chair and stared at Aldritch.

"Sir?..."

Aldritch sighed and rubbed his forehead. "We're going to be working with Itami's team a lot more from now on."

Elton realized what that meant, but not believing it he simply cocked his head to the side. As he did so Aldritch explained what he had meant in further detail.

"Evidently command decided that they had indeed jumped the gun with sending tanks out with the recon teams. At the time they had no idea what was outside our area. Now that we have a better idea of what's out there the need for tanks will once again be regulated to operations where armor will be a necessary asset. However, seeing as how your tank is the only one that fought a giant dragon and worked alongside the "Hero of Ginza", command deems it necessary that we're all guilty by association. Therefore, if Itami asks for us? We go unless we absolutely need to be elsewhere."

Elton's jaw dropped; this was wrong, this was stupid, and this was most certainly not standard procedure at all. Tanks didn't do "recon", there were plenty of JSDF vehicles. Unless Itami's team was off clearing villages or assaulting strong points, they wouldn't need tanks.

Of course to be fair Elton's old company did plenty of weird missions back in Afghanistan. But that was against an enemy who could fight back.

The corporal's fists balled up he didn't have a problem with Itami or the team at all, but it felt like as if the Marines had no control over the missions they were being sent on.

"Sir, with all due respect...what the _**fuck**_? Has command lost its mind? Like I know the Japanese are running the show but this is some straight up bullshit."

Aldritch turned on his heels with a look of anger on his face. "Look Elton I pleaded with Kane to see reason, but what the hell can I do? He's a goddamn Colonel! In truth he didn't seem all that thrilled about it either!"

The two Marines sat there for a moment as they let the information sink in, arguing about it certainly wasn't going to get either of them anywhere.

Elton let the information sink in, what could he do? He was only a Corporal, a cog in the machine and the machine had spoken. "Well sir, if that's how it's gonna be.

Elton sighed and stood up, as he grabbed his plate carrier, he joined Aldritch in looking out the window. A smile spread across his lips as he gazed at the scene outside.

His tank was surrounded by many of the other tankers as Wilkes raised his hands above his head and made wild gestures no doubt telling them the stories about their trip and subsequent fight with the dragon. He could see Kincaid and Benitez punching the gun with the ramming staffs, occasionally taking a break to laugh or confirm what Wilkes had said.

"I may not have been in charge of you guys for long and I know as your officer I shouldn't be opening up like this, but you're the best damn group of Marines I've had the pleasure of working with. A real officer should be able to confide in his men, not this bullshit robotic crap you see so much of with other units."

Elton turned and offered his hand out for a handshake, as Aldritch shook it firmly the corporal spoke his mind.

"Sir we'll do what you ask of us in the end it's our job. If I can be honest? When you first came to us you were a boot. Plain and simple, but in the short period of time we got called upon to carry out this operation you've gotten a hell of a lot better. I'm sure the guys feel the same way too, just don't make bad calls and we can keep it that way. I appreciate the honesty though sir you're a breathe of fresh air in the midst of all the bad leadership we've had these days."

The two men finished shaking hands and went back to business as usual. Aldritch briefed Elton on the bigger picture as well as the new gear they had to go pickup after they were done working on the tank. Elton also gave Aldritch a full debrief on the events of the "Recon" mission, when Elton had informed him of the damage the tank sustained, the lieutenant's eyes went wide.

"Let's go take a look at it shall we?"

As Elton donned his plate carrier Aldritch secured his pistol holster to his thigh and grabbed his eight point cover. The two men made their way out the door and over to the tank, as they got closer they could hear the usual chatter and loud music that accompanied the tankers wherever they went.

They could also hear the sounds of Kincaid, Wilkes, and Parker's crew going back and forth.

"Bruh you should've seen Kincaid, ole boy was a dragon fighting lady charming machine!"

"Shiiit you don't say? Dunn got all googly eyed at a goddamn cat girl we saw on the side of the road. Man you shoulda seen her, made me want to ditch all the girls back home in a heart beat!"

"Man you are seriously killing my vibes here."

"It's cool I'm pretty sure Kincaid has his eyes set on the elf girl we brought out of the well, medic-chan or not he's still a man of **_refined_** tastes. He's gonna start his own harem mark my words."

"Really? Damn Kincaid that's wavey as hell my dude."

"Dunn don't listen to his bull shit, Wilkes pass me the goddamn ratchet and breaker bar one of the wedge nuts looks like it's about to pop off. Oh shit! Rah sir."

Kincaid had been kneeling over the left of the track as Elton and Aldrtich approached. Noticing them he looked over his left shoulder and had given Aldritch the proper greeting of the day. Aldritch had merely nodded as he made his way around the tank to get a look at the battle damage.

Three long jagged claw marks were cut into the turret face. Thankfully they hadn't exposed the composite armor beneath, but they were still an impressive display of power all the same.

As Kincaid got up and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his arm he noticed Adlritch running his hands over the cuts. "Yeah he was huge sir easily as tall as the water towers back at Lejuene. I don't think I've been knocked around that bad since Afghan."

Benitez had been on the back deck of the tank checking fluid levels when he noticed Aldritch's arrival. Dusting himself off he hopped off the back of the tank and joined the others in admiring the dragon's handiwork. "He was fast too sir, _ **very**_ fast. Thank god Lieutenant Itami and the rest of the team came when they did. I mean don't get me wrong had we not thrown track we probably might've killed the _puta_ , but eh what can you do?"

Meanwhile, Parker had lit a cigarette and whistled as he once again looked over the claw marks.

"Shiiit we gotta get that asshole's head as a trophy, or his horns don't matter to me. Shit'll look good at the CP back at Lejuene. I reckon his days are numbered."

Aldritch folded his arms and smiled as he looked over the crew. "Fine work boys, part of me wanted to see your asses put to the burner, but you did good. Good enough to get the Colonel's attention."

Aldritch looked at his watch before fixing his cover. "Well boys I've got work to do, hopefully Parker and Johnson will get the meat from those animals they killed cooked in time. Oh and Happy Birthday Marines."

All the Marines resounded as one. " _ **Happy Birthday sir!"**_

Aldritch turned on his heels and headed back towards his quarters. As he did so Parker and his crew went over towards their tank to get the meat prepped, meanwhile Kincaid and the rest of the crew huddled around Elton.

"Boss so whats the good gouge?"

Elton set his plate carrier on the front slope and lit one his last cigarettes. "Well good news and bad news, which do you guys want first?"

Wilkes rolled his eyes as he produced a fresh pack of smokes from his cargo pocket, no doubt taken from within the squad bay. "Shit no such thing as good news in this bitch, hit us with it all."

As Kincaid and Benitez each took a cigarette from Wilkes Elton began diverging the good word he got, or rather bad word. Right as Kincaid heard the words nine and months he choked on the last drag he had taken.

"The fuck? Nine months?!"

Elton merely sighed, he knew Kincaid was going to start bitching. "My man you should've ditched the idea of getting out soon months ago, besides I haven't even gotten to the best part."

When Elton told them about the attachment to Itami's squad each of the tankers resounded in their own special way.

"See told you there wasn't good news, fuck it."

" _Ay dios mio,_ what's next we gotta help build huts?"

"Yo someone run my foot over with the tank."

 **XXXXXXX**

 _Five Hours later  
_

Kincaid resembled his M4 with practiced hands. Bringing the upper and lower receiver back together with a satisfying snap before popping the pins back into place. After a quick functions check consisting of a few crisp racks and some dry fires, he then eyed the weapon with a satisfied smile before slapping a magazine into its hungry maw.

All cleaned and ready to continue service, complete with the smell of CLP.

Contrary to popular belief, the M4/M16 series of weapons weren't jam machines that couldn't kill the enemy. They were light precise weapons designed for a military that prided itself on professionalism and marksmanship.

Like most Western militaries.

They may not have been built like an AK or an FAL, but that didn't matter. There was no such thing as a weapon that didn't need to be cleaned whenever feasibly possible. Of course, only people who had served or had experience with handling firearms would know this.

That didn't mean the troops would complain if the new Heckler and Koch 416's some of the SOG guys got became standard issue though. Familiar and with the HnK seal of quality, same seal adorning the M27 IARs some lucky 0331's got their SAWs replaced with.

"Jesus man you gonna beat your dick with the damn thing? I'm sure it's good."

"Bro, listen here. I like guns, I like **_my_** gun. Scuse me If I didn't luck out like you and get to swap my **gun** for a goddamn pump nasty*."

Kincaid lowered his carbine and looked over his shoulder at Elton, the tank commander standing there with his tan beanie on and shotgun slung he looked at gunner with a goofy smile.

"Don't be jelly, anyways I'm trying to eat and go shower bro. You're up first for guard duty, 2000 at the tanks so you'd better hurry too. Now before you go bitching I already asked, we're not getting complacent just cause we're in a massive fortress. XO's exact words."

"Oh joy."

Kincaid sighed and slung his carbine as he adjusted his boonie cover low over his head, at least he had guard duty first. The two made their way over to a large table that had been set off to the side of the two buildings the tankers called home. With a large camouflage netting hanging over it and several flood lights set up, it was as close to comfortable as they could get.

Around the makeshift dining area the other tankers in the platoon stood, smoking and joking they watched as Johnson and Parker grilled the day's kill over a simple grill. In true southern fashion they had even hooked up a large speaker and were blasting their music.

* * *

 **Parker and Johnson's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 11: Florida Georgia Line "Cruise"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

Elton rolled his eyes he hated country music with a passion, but if he wanted to eat he knew to just keep his mouth closed. After all there were a hell of a lot more southern boys then northern boys in the platoon.

As the two made their way over to the table Wilkes and Benitez could be seen tossing a football with the other tankers. It didn't matter where they went, someone always brought the old pigskin with the platoon. Kincaid lit up a cigarette and took a long drag, mirroring Kincaid Elton did the same before patting him on the back.

"You good man? I mean I haven't really asked since we got here."

Kincaid let out a long cloud of smoke as he watched Wilkes and Benitez tackle a driver from one of the other tanks.

Smiling he looked at Elton. "Yeah, man you remember when we used to talk about deploying again? How we'd do it in a heartbeat with our old company? Funny how we wound up doing it with this one, I figured most of the guys would've lost their shit or acted like idiots, but so far they're doing pretty well."

It was true, out of the entire of the company. Elton Wilkes and Kincaid were the only Afghan veterans hailing from the long disbanded Delta Company they had been transferred over to Charlie to serve out the rest of their enlistment. Elton chuckled and took another drag from his smoke, as he exhaled he looked up in the sky deep in thought.

"Yeah man, kinda thought we'd be spending our last year doing pointless training and dealing with garrison bullshit. Course Little Caesar and his gang of fuckheads had to go screw that up huh?"

The two Marines laughed, it was times like these among kindred spirits where Marines put the troubles of the now aside. So long as they had each other and their little comforts they would fight to the end.

Elton watched as the stars began to shine brightly through the darkening Special Region sky. "So you get any mail from home?"

Kincaid had finished his cigarette and was about to light up another one, a chain smoker to the end. It was a serious question of medical science how he hadn't contracted lung cancer.

Or any of the other tankers for that matter.

"Yeah wife's doing good, Abigail is starting to walk. Like really walk, she's all over the place. Looks more and more like me everyday."

Elton took a small photo out of his left shoulder's cargo pocket and held it under the light, a small light skinned girl was smiling as she waved at the camera. Kincaid could tell Elton missed her, he knew when he was about to get sentimental. He pat his tank commander's shoulder as he began to change the subject to something less discouraging.

"Yeah it's pretty crazy how fast the mail system got set up course I'm sure everything is being screened for sensitive information. I got like five different letters, most of them were from mom, but the other two were from dad and Janice. They're all doing well, Janice is still doing good in college and dad's still doing his secret agent shit over in Sudan."

Elton chuckled, the running gag was that there was Kincaid at every corner of the earth. Given the Kincaid's long family history of government service it was certainly no surprise. Elton lit up another cigarette

"Look bro lets just get through these nine months and go home, then it can be someone else's problem. All we gotta do is keep stacking the bodies until these assholes learn to quit, shouldn't be too long till that happens."

Kincaid took a long drag, his gut told him it wouldn't be so simple, but who was he to question the big scheme of it all. After all he was just a Corporal tanker. Suddenly Sergeant Johnson's voice came loud and proud over the sound of the music.

"Alright boys! Its time to chow down! Lemme just start by saying that I have absolutely no goddamn idea what the hell we killed."

He paused as if he was about to say something important only to shrug before continuing for dramatic effect.

"But it smells good. So far I haven't died from giving it a taste test either so I guess they're edible. So without further ado, get your asses over here and get you some of this deeeevine Georgia cooking!...well with a Special Region twist."

All the Marines cheered and went to grab the Styrofoam trays that littered the table someone had even gotten their hands on a bunch of assorted chips from the mess hall supply storage containers. No doubt some form of deal was made for those, tankers always found a way to get what they wanted.

As the Marines began to line up sergeant Johnson's face twisted into one of surprise, noticing this the other Marines looked in the same direction and began to mirror his expression. In fact even the music had abruptly stopped.

Leading a small group of strange looking women and locals, Itami and Aldritch made their way over towards the table. Not far behind them the rest of Itami's squad held large cases of UGRs*. Seeing Rory holding onto Itami's arm some of the Marines were visibly uneasy, Kincaid and the rest of his crew certainly didn't blame them.

As the group got closer Rory let go of Itami's arm and made her way over the group of stunned tankers, she giggled sensing their uneasiness.

"My my, so these must be the rest of the famed warriors who ride atop iron chariots."

She put a finger to her lip in curiosity as the scanned the Marines from left to right. "Now where is **_my_** favorite knight?"

Seeing Kincaid and Elton standing together in the back she quickly sprint to them and threw her arms around Kincaid's waist. Watching this the rest of the Marines gasped, a few had their hands on their weapons just in case. Meanwhile, Kurokawa was anything but amused as she watched from behind the rest of Itami's group.

"Jasper the dragon fighter, my favorite out of all the knights. The man who can't be kept down for long, I looked everywhere for you and your fellows you simply must give me another _**ride**_. It was...exhilarating."

Rory's lips held a mischievous smile as she gripped Kincaid tighter, eliciting a look of annoyance from the Marine. Kincaid struggled for a moment before an idea crossed his mind. "If you think our tanks are good...you should see the ones Itami's people use. They're even more fun than ours."

Rory's eyes lit up as she looked at Itami. "Really?"

Meanwhile, Itami looked at Kincaid with a look of sorrow, why had he forsaken him so?

Kincaid gave her a big grin. "Hell yeah! In fact it was supposed to be a secret, he was going to show you them tomorrow."

Rory let go of Kincaid and ran towards Itami, mirroring the same form of request she had used on Kincaid. As this happened, Johnson had finally had enough confusion and spoke on behalf of the rest of the platoon.

"Could someone please tell me what the fuck is goin on? Who are these people sir?"

Aldritch came forward and raised an arm as he introduced the group. "Boys this is Lieutenant Youji of Recon Team Three, the rest of these fine men and women are under his command. They were the ones who helped bring our boys back alive and well. As for the refugees, they're part of the group the team had rescued. As an act of comradery and thanks, I invited them to join us in this time of celebration, treat them like you would your fellow Marines."

As Itami and his team introduced themselves, the rest of the tank platoon came forward and began helping them offload the UGRs onto the table. If the XO said they were good people, then they were good people to the rest of the platoon. Especially if they had helped bring their brothers home safe.

Meanwhile, Lelei had came forward and spoke to Johnson. "When we smelled your cooking we simply had to be here, I've never seen the Grass Grazers prepared so well."

Johnson adjusted himself and put on a good face. "That what they're called? Sheeut they looked like giant mutated Weasels to me, but thanks little lady. That's South Georgia cooking you're smelling there, mighty fine if I do say so myself."

Lelei took a look at the grill and noticed that the flame was beginning to dim, making her way past the Marine Sergeant she began to chant a small fire spell. With palms opened towards the fire a small spark began to form in her hands, muttering another phrase the spark made its way over to the grill and reignited the flame.

Johnson and many of the other Marines watched with their mouths agape, this was their first time seeing magic since they had been here. To the men and women of RCT3, this was just another day with Lelei.

"Jumpin Jesus on a stick! What the hell was that!?"

The Sergeant had finally rubbed his eyes with his hands, not believing what he had seen. Meanwhile Lelei stared at the Sergeant, her blue eyes filled with question in them. "That was a simple spell, I can do something _**greater**_ if that wasn't enough."

Suddenly Itami ran over and put his hands on her shoulders. "No that won't be necessary Ms. Lalena! I apologize about that Sergeant. Lelei here is a mage, we probably should have informed your Lieutenant."

As the rest of the Marines began to calm down and try to make sense of what just happened Itami took charge of the situation and tried to change the subject.

"Well uh looks like we're all here and ready! So lets get this...how do you Americans say it? Oh, shindig started!"

Shrugging, the Marines went back to work and the night continued. As the table was prepared for the Tankers' new guests Kurokawa made her way over to Kincaid and helped him set a UGR down on the table.

"Jasper, it's good to see you. Happy Birthday by the way! How's your head feeling?"

Kincaid gave her a thumbs up as cheesy grin began to form on his face. "Thanks and I'm feeling like a million bucks doc."

As they set the food down Kurokawa gave Kincaid a warm smile. "Good, well just to be sure I want to give you a look over at least once a week, we'll say, 0900?. Concussions can often have lasting damage and we still have to make sure everything else is fine."

As she said this, the platoon Corpsmen HM3 Carter came forward. A small fellow from Wisconsin he didn't look intimidating in the least. Still, Kincaid and any other Marines in the platoon were _**his**_ priority. The small Corpsmen looked up at Kurokawa before fixing his glasses.

"Won't be necessary, I already gave him a MACE* exam and clean bill of health. He's good to perform his duties."

Kurokawa looked at Carter with a stern look as she glanced over his name tape. "Were you there when it happened Carter?"

The Corpsmen folded his arms. "No, but these Marines are in my care-"

Suddenly Kurokawa interrupted him before he could continue. "Well then, so long as he's attached to RCT3 he's under _**my**_ care as well. I've already gotten clearance from Lieutenant Youji as well as Lieutenant Aldritch if you'd like to discuss this further."

Defeated, Carter simply rogered as she walked away prompting of the other tankers to mutter.

"Aye ma'am or some shit."

Kincaid and Carter flashed the Marines a glare as they went back to work. Eventually the table was prepared and the food served and everyone at their respective seats.

To say it was an interesting gathering was an understatement, especially for Kincaid who just so happened to be stuck between Kurokawa and Rory. Meanwhile Shino had been trying to persuade an annoyed Wilkes to an arm wrestling match, so far she wasn't having any luck.

Before the two groups began to eat Parker took a stand and made a request. "Well on behalf on the Marines of Second Tanks Charlie Company I'd like to lead us in prayer."

Nodding in approval various Marines as well as as the Japanese bowed their heads in respect. Meanwhile, the refugees did the same.

"Heavenly father, we thank you for this bountiful meal on this evening of celebration. We ask that you continue to watch over our brothers and sisters in both the Corps and the JSDF as we continue our fight here. In the end we know not why you called us here to do you will, but in the end can we ever question your plan? Father I pray you continue to comfort our families at home as well, give them your careful gaze as you do for us. In your name we pray, Amen."

A series of Amen's rang out from the table, the JSDF gave their thanks for the food in Japanese and dug in. The rest of the dinner after was a story for the ages.

Stories of service were told from both groups as the evening went on and even Elton, Kincaid, and Wilkes divulged some of their old war stories to wide eyed listeners. To everyone else stories of Afghanistan were to be listened to carefully, many valuable lessons could be learned from them.

At one point Rory had even jumped atop the table and claimed that the tankers were to be called the "Riders of Emroy".

This had been met with a few laughs and some Marines even liked the name. Of course there were the more spiritually devoted Marines who had simply shook their heads. The only god **_they_** served was Jesus Christ.

Long after the food was done the antics continued Wilkes had finally caved in to Shino's request and arm wrestled her. The solid beating he got as a result would be a joke used to death in the coming months. Even Benitez was asked to play some of the music from his country and translate what was being said.

Meanwhile, Kurata attempted to discuss the finer points of Otaku life with two of the tank mechanics. So far he wasn't having any luck and just about the only real response he had gotten from them was being called a "Fucking Weener".

They did know what Runescape was however.

There was omly one person who had yet to say anything, the elf. Dressed in her newly acquired white T-shirt and jeans she had remained quiet throughout the feast. Every so often she'd raise her head and look around like as if she was expecting someone. After a while she'd simply sigh and return to staring at the table.

Kincaid had seen this and looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "So you gonna sit there and keep staring or you gonna join in the festivities?"

Kurokawa promptly elbowed him in the side and whispered. "Her name is Tuka and we're pretty sure she has a very bad case of PTSD from her father's death at that burned down village. She's been kinda in and out all day."

Kincaid's eyes widened, PTSD. The silent killer, his old foe. He had long conquered his, but even now old memories didn't always stay gone. He shook his head and snapped back into focus.

"Sorry I didn't mean to-" before Kincaid could finish Tuka had finally spoken softly, bowing her head as she did so.

"Its, alright. I was just wondering when my father would be here that's all, I am Tuka Luna Marceau. I saw your valiant display against the flame dragon and I thank you for saving myself and the others. Truly I am in your debt."

Kurokawa looked at Kincaid in shock, she hadn't opened up like that since earlier that day. Reaching his hand across the table to her Kincaid gave her a smile.

"Think nothing of it ma'am, Jasper Kincaid U.S. Marines, Second Tank Battalion Charlie Company Headquarters Platoon. My fellow tankers and I are here to serve."

As he said this a series of grunts of approval rang out, along with some motivated "Oorah"s and "Yuts"s.

Tuka stared at the strange warrior's hand, like the rest of his comrades Jasper was of a much different complexion than Itami and the rest of his fellow warriors. She finally reached her hand forward and shook his, the first thing she noticed was just how heavy it felt. Covered in callouses and signs of military service she could **_feel_** the stories contained in it.

She also sensed, pain?

After some highly demanded magic displays from Lelei, there was one final even to go down. The one that had always remained a tradition within the platoon. As the feast continued suddenly a song began to grow louder and louder.

* * *

 **Kincaid and Wilkes's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 12: Alexandra Stan "Mr Saxobeat"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

Kincaid bowed his head in embarrassment he knew what was coming next. Suddenly all the Marines began to yell.

"Kincaid! Wilkes! Do the dance!"

The Japanese and the three girls looked around in surprise as the Marines began to pound their fists on the table. What exactly where they talking about?

Itami leaned his head over towards Aldritch and asked with a raised eyebrow. "What exactly are they talking about?"

Aldritch chuckled not removing his eyes from the sight of the Marines banging their fists on the table. "I was wondering when this would happen. You see, Kincaid and Wilkes have this choreographed dance they made out of boredom in Afghanistan. Needless to say every time we go out into the field the guys ask them to perform it. You're in for a real treat, or an embarrassment."

Itami and the rest of RCT3 watched with wide eyes as Kincaid sighed and set his carbine down against the table. Making his way over to a flat piece of dirt he flexed his shoulders and took a deep breathe. What happened next had absolutely made their sides hurt in laughter.

Kincaid began to shuffle in the dirt to the rhythm of the song, as the beat really began to drop he started to kick his feet every which way as he slid to the left and right. Dirt was kicked from his boots as he continued his strange dance.

As the song continued he began to do a motion with his hands like he was pulling a rope, the audience stopped their laughter for a moment trying to figure out the cause for this. Eventually they saw their answer as Wilkes began to pretend he was getting dragged in.

Once the two were side by side Wilkes began to mimic every move Kincaid did as they danced together. Meanwhile, the Marines hooped and hollered as the pair continued to dance in synchronization. Just when things couldn't get any stranger everyone noticed Rory had left her seat.

As Kincaid and Wilkes continued their dance a newcomer had joined in with them, one that had almost thrown their rhythm off as she grabbed Kincaid's hands and began to try to copy his foot patterns. What resulted was two Marines who tried to keep their best smiles on as they danced with the apostle. Meanwhile Rory laughed and giggled, she was having an absolute blast. Even Kurokawa had to let out a laugh.

Eventually the rest of the Marines had gotten so amped to the point of zero restraint. One by one they began to run over and do their own dances to the beat of the music. To the Marines of any other units that had seen this, this was just another scene of Marines being the goofballs they were. To the members of RCT3, this had been both the funniest and strangest thing they had ever seen.

Eventually even Shino had jumped out of her seat, if anyone wasn't going to be showed up by Marines, it was her. Many of the Marines gave her a wide birth as she jumped in, no one wanted a trip to the BAS*.

That was how the night went, bonding between the troops of two different forces. United by the stress of being away from home and the uncertain future of the campaign they had came together during a time of celebration.

Eventually everyone had made their way back to the table and tried to catch their breaths. As an exhausted Kincaid sat down at his seat Kurokawa turned to face him with a smile and raised eyebrow.

"Well that was...interesting. How did you get so good at that?"

Kincaid lit a cigarette and took a long drag, as he let a long cloud of smoke out he responded not removing his gaze from the smoke cloud.

"We had waaaay too much free time on our hands over there."

Kurokawa merely giggled, Kincaid was surprising her more and more each day.

Eventually Itami and the rest of RCT3 had to take their leave handshakes were shared and good feelings of trust were exchanged between the two groups. With that RCT3 thanked the Marines for the meal and took their leave.

As they made their way out of sight, Kincaid lit another cigarette and waved at them. Meanwhile, chatter began to break out among the tankers they had always thought _**they**_ were the odd ones. This new group that arrived had definitely dissuaded them of that notion.

"A goddess of death? She looked like she couldn't be any older than my sister!"

"Right!? You see that elf though? The jeans didn't do her justice man, that ass was like ready to bust free."

"Bruh, I saw Dunn staring at Gandalf. Yeah the fucking magician you retard. Dunn's a..whatcha call it? Oh yeah a lolicon!."

"Duude...not cool maaan, seriously killing my positive waves here."

"Dunn its okay _amigo_ , Kincaid's about to get some suffering sushi from that Sergeant. Mmm _arigatou_ Jasper-Kun, tee hee."

"Oooooh! Shots fired!"

"Shut the fuck up! Why does everyone think I've got the hots for her!? And Benitez, you like little lush lolis! So don't give me that shit!"

"Fuck you man!"

After some more ramblings and a few wrestling matches, the group began to make their way back into the comfort of the squad bay. Eventually Kincaid and his crew made their way out of the squad bay. Clad in their PT attire and carrying their hygiene kits, the four tankers began making their way to the showers.

Talk about one hell of a Marine Corps Birthday.

* * *

 **Jargon/Lingo/Acronyms**

 **LVSR-** **Logistics Vehicle System Replacement. Big ass logistics truck made by Oshkosh**

 **BAS-Battalion Aid Station. It literally winds up being used for every medical facility however.**

 **UGR-Unitized Group ration. Hot food in a big green box, sometimes good sometimes not. You learn to love that shit in the field though.**


	12. Outbound

**Chapter 10: Outbound  
**

" _The safest place was right behind a platoon of Marines. Lord, how they could fight!"_

MGen. Franke E. Lowe, USA; Korea, 26 January 1952

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 0700 HOURS, MOTOR POOL, 2D TANKS SQUADBAY, CAMP** ** **ALNUS****

"Fuck!"

Kincaid rocketed out of his bed sweat clinging to his body his eyes darted around. After a moment he regained his composure, he wasn't in Afghan and his tank didn't hit an IED. He pressed his hand to his forehead, another nightmare.

Slowly laying back down on his bed he checked his watch, it was only 0700.

 _Ugh, two more hours._

Today just so happened that one of the days he had to go see Kurokawa for one of his usual "Checkups". In truth he really wasn't excited for it, there was really no need to get looked at and he was feeling fine. It had been three quiet weeks since their first mission outside the wire and yet she still insisted on seeing him.

Kincaid sighed as he once again weighed his options, he could pretend he had a lot of tank maintenance come up. No, that wouldn't work and if she found out he had lied? Kincaid shuddered at the thought as he looked around the squad bay.

In the gloomy blue dull of the morning's light he could see various other Marines tossing, turning, and snoring in their bunks. The worst of it however was right above him, Wilkes. It was well known that Wilkes's snoring was by far the worst out of the entire platoon, possibly the entire company.

Now that Kincaid was awake and could hear it clear as day? There was no way he was going back to sleep, admitting defeat he made the only decision that felt right.

Go for a run.

Rising out of his bed and stretching in his boxers, Kincaid shifted to the rear of his bunk and opened up his main pack. Mouthing a silent curse at General "Gotcha Kincaid"'s arrow jutting out of it, he reached inside and grabbed his sweats and hoodie. As he got dressed a voice muttered through the sounds of the squad bay.

"Damn girl you got ugly as fuck."

Kincaid turned around and saw Wilkes smiling, his thick muscled bear like arms exposed from the top of his covers. He had to have been having another one his dreams. The kind where he'd bag some hot celebrity only to wake up and realize it was all in his mind.

Kincaid put his hoodie on, raising the hood over his head. As he did so he turned and looked at Wilkes, shaking his head all the while as he whispered.

"Man when are you gonna learn? That shit is never happening, also your broke ass can't even keep a normal girlfriend for fucks sake."

Wilkes chuckled as he pulled his covers back up. "A man can dream."

"Not an ugly one."

"Kiss my ass."

As Kincaid slipped into his running shoes and grabbed his MP3 player and promptly slung his carbine over the edge of Wilkes's bunk. Adjusting his pistol holster onto his right leg and ensuring his M9 was on safe, Kincaid quietly made his way out the door and into the motor pool.

Kincaid got a good stretch in as he took in his surroundings, as he rubbed his knees a voice called out to him.

"Heeey Kincaid, going out for a little run dude?"

Kincaid looked over to his right and saw Dunn standing there. With his beanie drooping over his eyes and the mellow expression on his face, a lot of the Marines had begun calling him "High Life".

Dunn chuckled as he lazily walked up to Kincaid, one hand in his pocket and the other resting on the pistol grip for his M4 he looked like someone who had merely thrown the uniform on and claimed he was a Marine. He was certainly no pushover however and it was also a well known fact that Dunn was a stellar driver and could maneuver his tank just about anywhere.

As Dunn got closer Kincaid could see a lit cigarette loosely hanging from his mouth. The two gave each other a warriors handshake and followed it up with a hug. In truth Kincaid and Dunn had become very good friends from the moment Kincaid had came into the company, owing in no small part to Dunn also being an geek as well.

"Guard duty again?" Kincaid began to slip his headphones over his head as Dunn shrugged, taking a drag from his cigarette.

"Yeaaah, same shit different day man. Yo when you get back we gotta watch the rest of Big-O that shit was bomb as hell."

Kincaid scrolled through his MP3's playlist as he responded to Dunn not taking his eyes of the screen. "Sounds good, may not be able to make it long though. I gotta go see _Medic-Chan,_ blech."

Dunn laughed as he took a drag doing a mock pelvic thrust all the while. "Heh, she's pretty hot dude. I'd say go for it."

Kincaid rolled his eyes and finally started the song that wouldn't make him crash and burn during his run.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 13: Flying Lotus Ft. Kendrick Lamar "Never Catch Me"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

As the song began to start Kincaid maxed the volume out and let the bass overtake him. Doing a small jig to the beat of the song Kincaid stuck his middle finger at Dunn and took off up the path leading out of the motor pool. He was feeling good and the run was burning off some negative feelings he had when he originally woke up.

With a whole day of possibly nothing to do and the fact that his tank was already prepped and good to go it was no surprise that Kincaid began to run to the beat of the song. As he exited the motor pool's gate a small trio of infantry Marines began to make their way past him they looked like they had just came off guard duty at one of the many guard towers at the base's walls.

Kincaid promptly jumped in front of them and began to dance to the beat of the song, running in place as he did so. One of the Marines chuckled and began to dance along with him, little moments like these were what brought Marines together regardless of occupation. This went on for a few seconds before Kincaid took a bow and made his way off down the winding paths leading through the base.

After a few minutes Kincaid began to look around and noticed that he was most definitely not on the Marine side of the base anymore. Large signs jutted up every so often and as Kincaid looked at them closer he noticed the language was in Japanese. As if to confirm his suspicions he began to see various Japanese personnel moving to and fro between buildings. Some of them looked like they were in a rush, others simply took their time.

All of them took the time to stare at the peculiar looking American running through their premises some of them had even laughed and tried to emulate Kincaid's strange dance run. Kincaid smiled and waved as he continued his journey.

Eventually Kincaid had came to a large sign that stood in front of two rectangular buildings. Upon closer examination he could see that he had stopped in front of the refugee zone. Behind the gate a lieutenant was talking to some black haired cat girl.

Kincaid swore he had see that Marine somewhere before, but merely shook his head.

As Kincaid scratched his head utterly stumped as to how he got there, one of the JSDF guards walked up to him and began speaking in Japanese.

Kincaid took his headphones off and looked at the soldier like he had spoken in some completely alien language, in truth he might as well have been. Kincaid sighed and tried to make the best of the situation.

" _ **I don't speak Japanese**_ , which way is it to the American side of the base?"

The soldier stared at him for a moment and began talking in Japanese again as he did so one of the other JSDF guards walked up and began talking in Japanese to Kincaid as well. The Marine rolled his eyes, this was going nowhere.

The back and forth of two countries trying to make sense of each other went on for a few minutes until finally a familiar voice came and broke the confusion.

"Kincaid you never cease to entertain, how'd you wind up all the way over here?"

Kincaid breathed a sigh of relief as he spun around, Itami had shown up out of nowhere. Dressed in his usual service uniform and cap he made his way over to the three men and brought some sense to them. After the two soldiers pointed and laughed at Kincaid they returned to their post. The Marine was moments away from teaching both of them a lesson when Itami put a hand on his shoulder.

"They're not worth the time, how's about I walk you over to the main strip? Should be easy to find your way from there."

Kincaid unclenched his fists seeing the reason in Itami's words. "Fine, but next time I see them and you're not here? I'm sending them _**both**_ back to Japan."

Itami laughed and the two began their trip through the base's winding paths.

"So sir, how's things? Squad doing good?"

Kincaid lowered his hoodie as he ran a hand along his clean shave. The beard had to go, but thankfully his thick mustache was still very much alive and kicking.

"Ah same old, they're doing okay. Heard you have an appointment with Kurokawa today. Keep your wits about you dhe can be a lot meaner than she looks. Anyways with all the refugee paperwork I've hardly had any time to catch up on my shows. It doesn't help that all the higher ups have their eyes on me too."

Kincaid groaned, he had hardly caught up on any of his hobbies either.

"Great that's exactly what I wanted to hear sir. As for me? I think I watched maybe one episode of Big O last night with a couple of the guys. Then I just passed out."

"Big O? Yikes, that's an old one."

"Yeah? Well at least it isn't mindless fan service like all the shit out now."

"True."

The two men shared in their woes until they finally got to the large intersection. Pointing down one of the branching paths Itami showed Kincaid which direction to go. With a wave Kincaid said his goodbyes to Itami before throwing his headphones and hood back on, he then ran off into the distance.

Itami watched Kincaid slowly fade away down the path before he heard a familiar voice whine in protest behind him.

"You and Jasper hung out and didn't invite me? You're so mean Itami."

Itami sighed and turned around to face Rory. "He was in a hurry, I couldn't just keep him here."

Rory walked closer to Itami as a small mischievous smile spread across her lips. "That's fine, I suppose _**one**_ is better than _ **none**_."

Anyone who had been in the immediate area would have heard Itami's cry for help before the usual sounds of the base drowned it out.

* * *

 **0850, CAMP ALNUS BATTALION AID STATION(BAS)  
**

To say Kurokawa was disappointed was an understatement, as she sat in her office she began to tap her fingers on the table. Once again Kincaid was **_late_**.

Well technically he still had ten minutes, but any good service member always knew to show up fifteen minutes prior to any appointment.

Just as she was about to fly into a fit of rage she heard a familiar voice in the hallway.

"Sorry! Coming through! Whoah heh excuse me mam!"

Kurokawa quickly composed herself and made sure her office was neat as a knock came at her door. Making sure her hair was straightened in a nearby mirror she cleared her throat.

"Come in."

As soon as she had responded the door quickly opened and in stepped Jasper Kincaid, Kurokawa smiled. He had been in a rush getting there, his boonie cover was lopsided and his FROG suit looked slightly disheveled.

"Sorry doc, I got lost early this morning and the platoon held me up then there was..." Kurokawa promptly interrupted Kincaid, her hands clasped on her desk.

"Its fine Jasper, late as you may be even I can understand when the military runs one ragged. Please have a seat on the chair and we can begin."

Kincaid sighed and removed his boonie cover, as he dragged a chair out from in front of the desk he unslung his carbine and neatly laid it against a nearby wall. As he took a seat he looked around the office, his eyes wide with curiosity as he whistled.

"Damn doc, never ceases to amaze me how your setup is here. Our corpsmen don't even get accommodations this nice."

Kurokawa laughed as she watched the Marine continue to admire her work space, in truth the facilities back in Japan were even better.

"Well you don't pick up sergeant for nothing, so how have you been?"

Kincaid stretched for a moment as his long arms went up into the air, relieving himself he rested his boonie cover on his lap. "Well as usual I'm good Doc, sorry, Mari. To be honest my head's felt a little strange here and there, but other besides that I really don't feel any different."

Kurokawa sighed and smiled as she went to respond. "Well that's good, I mean how have you been mentally? How are things in your platoon?"

Kincaid scratched his head as he thought for a moment before responding. "Well, haven't had a lot of downtime up till now. Needs of the tank you know? If you remove the fact that we're in a completely different world, feels like another deployment to us. Well for Wilkes, Elton, and I at least. Sometimes I feel a little bugged out knowing magic and dragons really do exist, but eh just another day on the farm you know?"

"Just another day on the farm" Kincaid's platoon had been the armored spear from the moment it had touched down in Ginza. He had helped spearhead the incursion through the gate; helped wiped out an enemy force four times the coalition's number, went toe to toe with a giant dragon and almost lost his life, and had seen countless acts of violence and bloodshed.

This was "Just another day on the farm?", Kurokawa was absolutely dumbfounded at his response.

"I have to say Jasper, your response has left me a little...confused."

Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out an energy drink, popping the tab and taking a swig he savored the taste before he clarified what he had meant.

"You wouldn't be the first to say that. I guess once you've been in the Marines for so long you just come to accept whatever comes your way. We're trained from day one to counter any eventuality, the unknown is what we specialize in fighting and at last minute to boot. Shit we fight it everyday back in garrison, I guess in the end what I mean to say is. We just gotta do what we gotta do, let the big problems matter to the big people. Our job is to just do as we're told, not like we have any say in it. As long as there's a good reason for your work, there's nothing to stress about."

Kurokawa smiled, so he was a man of integrity and hard work. As a medic, hell as a Japanese citizen she could respect that.

"For someone who claims to be an Otaku, I didn't expect such a response Jasper. You remind a lot of Lieutenant Youji, sure he has his moments, but he's out here with everyone's interests at heart."

"I'm not really an Otaku...more of a." Kincaid shook his head. "Nevermind."

The Marine took another swig and nodded his head. "Yeah he's a good officer, little goofy, but hey everyone has their own methods of leadership. Wonder how he would've done in Afghan.

Suddenly Kurokawa remembered what she had brought him into her office for in the first place. In truth despite all their meetings she really hadn't learned too much about Kincaid. They were usually quick meetings that ended with her dismissing him to go about his day.

Today was going to be different though.

"Back on the topic of how you're doing. I won't lie Jasper when I first met you, I thought you to be...how do you put it? Not quite there, the way you would react to certain things going on around you left me feeling...unsure about how you were doing mentally. Then there's of course the nightmare you had while you were knocked out. Now I know we've been meeting up frequently, but I still can't help but be curious."

Kincaid had finished his drink and as the can lowered Kurokawa could see that his expression changed. It was rather blank and devoid of the excitement he usually had in it. As he tossed the can into a garbage bin he adjusted himself in his seat.

"Eh it's cool, I was wondering when you'd ask anyways. Look Mari, I'm fine. This sort of thing? Its nothing new to me, new bodies, different place, same old battlefield. If you dwell on that crap it'll affect more than just you, but everyone around you. If you think for one moment I wouldn't gladly go home right now you're wrong. In all honesty, I could give a shit less about all the cat girls and elves and the rest of this fantasy crap. My freedom was _**this**_ close, and now it's even farther."

Kurokawa was slightly taken aback she hadn't seen him this serious since they had arrived at the Elven village. Just as she was about to clear the air, Kincaid promptly continued.

"I could be home right now, I could be in college. I'd have grown my beard out and be relaxing in my warm bed in Maryland, instead shit went from zero to one hundred real quick. This was supposed to be a simple training op, one last bullshit op was all I had to get through and I could be free and out of the Corps. Instead I'm here fighting in another war cause some pseudo roman assholes decided to go stick their noses where they don't belong. I want to go home, but I have a job to do."

Kincaid sighed as his eyes examined the MARPAT pattern on his FROGs.

"Long ago I realized that so long as I wear this uniform? My life is not mine to be in control of. Sure I bitch and complain about it, but what good does that do? Some days are harder than others, other ones I feel right as rain. There's plenty of other people here who are probably in the same boat, so what makes me special? I really don't have any room to be bitching and moaning."

Kincaid left some air out between his lips before continuing. "As for the nightmare, well I guess it was a matter of time before being here started to bring back the old memories. I'm not hurt by what happened anymore, I sure as shit don't blame myself for it anymore either."

Kurokawa sat there and waited eagerly. He was finally beginning to open up, maybe there was something she could do to help. Kincaid took a deep breath and closed his eyes and when he opened them he began to look Kurokawa directly in hers.

"Some things never go away you know? I laugh and I can function like a normal person now, but every so often I get a little reminder. A reminder of how I became stronger than I used to be."

"Everything about this deployment reminds me of Afghanistan, from the incentive right down to how smooth it's been so far. It's not that I don't believe in us being here, I believed in Afghanistan too. It's just that.."

Kurokawa raised an eyebrow. "That what?"

"That I don't know how long we're going to keep being lucky. I lost something in Afghan Mari and I keep feeling like I'm gonna lose something here too. I just, fuck, I'm fucking conflicted."

Kurokawa sat silently as she watched the Marine rub his forehead for a few moments. She could feel his frustration, she'd seen little glimpses of it over the past month during each one of his visits. Something happened to him in Afghanistan, and she wanted to know what it was. She wanted to help him she truly did and deep down she knew it was starting to go beyond just doctor and patient too.

She had become attracted to him. As stupid as it was and as foolish a place it was to have done it, she had. They had spent long hours talking about everything and anything, each time Kincaid opening up a little more. Kurokawa wanted to be his rock, she knew she could do it.

Felt she had to. She liked to help people, it was in her nature.

It was why she enlisted.

Before the situation could continued, the door to the office promptly opened revealing an out of breath Itami. "Kurokawa get your gear ready, we have another mission. Command wants us out the front gate in an hour."

Kincaid merely raised an eyebrow as he slightly turned around in his seat. Finally noticing the Marine, Itami gave a nervous smile. "Oh Kincaid my apologies, I didn't notice you there at first. I've been so caught up with planning this mission out last minute."

Kincaid merely laughed as he started to gather his things, once again he was back to his normal self. "Hah don't sweat it sir."

As he slung his carbine he turned to face Kurokawa. "Hey doc, next time we meet up I'll tell you the rest of that story. Thanks for this though, It was nice to get some things off my chest. Good luck on your mission."

As Kincaid went to head to the door, Elton suddenly barged in almost knocking him down. "Jesus bro, you're a tough man to find. Come on we gotta get the tank prepped."

Not good.

"What exactly for?"

Elton merely pointed at a now nervous smiling Itami. "What do you think?"

"Son of a bitch..."

* * *

 **0930, CAMP ALNUS MOTOR POOL  
**

The tankers and Itami's recon squad gathered around a large map board set up at the makeshift dining table. Meanwhile; Lelei, Tuka, and Rory also joined the troops in listening in.

In truth they simply had nothing else to do.

As the various personnel began to take notes Aldrtich began the brief pointing at the map as he did so.

"Gentleman, ladies. Over the past few days special forces teams have been working tirelessly. Between scouting out the area and conducting raids on enemy positions they've been delivering nothing but results in aiding our campaign."

He pointed to a large square structure that stood out in the center of the map.

"But this, this has been an absolute find. What we have here is the central trading hub for the entire region. Known as Italica, command has deemed this a high priority location for our forces to extend their influence. If we can establish good relations or possibly even a FOB, it will provide an immense tactical advantage in the coming campaign. That been said, Lieutenant General Hazama and Lieutenant Colonel Kane have personally requested that our tanks accompany Lieutenant Youji's recon team as they establish contact."

Hearing this, a lot of of the tankers gasped. Some even smirked once again they were in the spotlight. Shino had even put her arms around the shoulders of two very surprised tankers. She was absolutely ecstatic to be working with a whole platoon of tanks.

Of course, not everyone was thrilled with this mission. Johnson, ever the voice of reason stepped forward to voice his concerns.

"Sir, with all due respect. The JSDF have plenty of tanks, why task us for this?"

Many of the tankers nodded in response, the Japanese had more than enough tanks. Why bother them to get the job done? Before Aldritch could respond Itami came forward and answered the Sergeant's question.

"Lieutenant General Hazama has stressed the importance of joint operations from the moment we set foot in the Special Region. Our tank crews don't have experience in training for a wide variety of situations like you. We also lack some of the veterans that your platoon has; Kincaid, Elton, Wilkes. I hate to put you in the spotlight, but you in particular have been invaluable. Your experience in Afghanistan paid dividends in our last mission and the commander has noticed that in my reports. Furthermore our tanks are being prepped for a major offensive elsewhere."

Accepting this as a reasonable answer Johnson went back into the crowd, as he did this Aldritch nodded at Itami before continuing.

"Ladies and gents, more important information. One of our SOG teams have reported that a high ranking Imperial figurehead is currently residing at Italica. We believe this is a direct result of large amounts of bandit attacks carried out against the hub. The operators were unable to get her name before they had to bug out, but they were able to identify her as a princess. That been said? We need to move into the area and secure it ASAP, once we establish positive rapport with the Princess we'll radio back to base. After that, well, everything falls on shoulders much higher than ours. Any other questions?"

After a few moments of quiet Aldritch nodded to Itami, returning the gesture Itami once again took the center stage. "On behalf of Recon Team Three, my men and I are happy to be working with you all. Our last mission with one of your crews has demonstrated the amount of skill and professionalism you all possess. We feel a lot safer knowing the big guns will be watching over us."

Kincaid and his crew snickered at this remark, they had been _**very**_ professional. Suddenly Johnson once again butted in.

"Sir one last question."

Pointing at Lelei, Rory, and Tuka Johnson continued. "Why are goddamn civilians coming with us? They're fucking **c** _ **hildren**_ for Christ's sake."

Before Itami could respond Rory had grabbed the Johnson by the collar at lightning speed. It had all happened so fast that none of the Marines even had time to think about reaching for their weapons.

Hoisting the large southern man in the air Rory began to talk with her trademark smile, her other hand holding her Halberd with contemptuous ease. "You think of me as a _**child**_? I have fought more times in my life than you have your entire stay here."

By now many of the Marines had raised their weapons, aiming them right at Rory. Even with all the interaction both groups had been conducting, many of the Marines simply didn't trust Rory. She was a wild card an individual without allegiance to anyone they were concerned with.

Before the situation could escalate any further Itami stepped between Rory and the Marines. "Whoah whoah, everyone calm down. Rory, let him go."

After a few moments she giggled and dropped Johnson flat on his rear Coughing all the while he was helped up by the others.

Aldritch merely sighed as he answered Johnson's question.

"These three are in possession of remarkable abilities...as we've already seen. They also know the lay of the land a lot better than we do, but more importantly they will also be invaluable in showing the locals that we come in peace."

Seeing the reason in this the Marines merely nodded, Johnson doing the same in embarrassment. Aldritch waited for things to die down before he rubbed his head in frustration.

"...Anything else?"

Once again he was met with the same quiet as before Aldritch clapped his hands together as he finished up the brief. "Right then, order of march is gonna be our tanks followed by Lieutenant Youji's team. Mike eighty eight I want you behind the trucks. Alright let's get it done people, Horsemen mount up."

Like an overturned ant nest the tankers scrambled to their tanks. Gear was loaded and ammunition was accounted for and readied. Comm checks were carried out and in moments the sounds of turbine engines could be heard starting. Meanwhile, the three girls clambered inside Itami's truck though it had taken a great deal of effort to prevent Rory from trying to ride with the tanks.

As Kincaid, Elton, and Wilkes gathered around their tank in preparation to ground guide it Itami came running up to them with a large cardboard box. Setting the box down on the front slope he yelled over the sound of the engine.

"As requested! I had to pull out all the stops to get this through the gate, but here's my end of the bargain!"

The three tankers opened the flaps to the box, peered inside, and promptly closed it. As one, they all gave Itami a bear hug.

"MVP of the mother fucking hour!"

The tankers roughed Itami up for a few moments before sending him off. Now that spirits were high, the convoy could roll out.

As they made their way to the the main gate they could hear the sounds of the Marines standing guard duty hooping and hollering as they blasted music on their loud speakers.

* * *

 **Gate Guards' Album of Awesome**

 **Track 14: Stevie Ray Vaughan "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

The sight of four massive M1A1's and a M88 had worked them into a motivated frenzy, seeing Kincaid's tank with its battle marks pumped them up even more.

"Get some dragon fighters!"

The tankers fist bumped some of the guards and did all sorts of vulgar poses as they ground guided their tanks towards the gate. Once they were at the predetermined spot, the tanks halted and the tankers scrambled aboard their vehicles. Meanwhile Itami's team merely laughed and waved at the over hyped Marines manning the front gate post.

Rory had even stuck her head out the back of Itami's vehicle and smiled as she waved at them. This had only pumped the Marines up more, one had even snapped a photo of her with his digital camera. Eventually the convoy rolled out the front gate and into the Special Region wilderness.

A long mission awaited them.

* * *

 **1000 HOURS, MARINE CORPS CP**

Second Lieutenant Kristian Emerson made his way to the CP he rubbing his head in anguish, the previous night's celebrations had left him with a mean hangover.

Somehow one of the admin Marines had been able to smuggle in a handle of Jack Daniel's and through a series of trades it wound up in Emerson's possession. Despite sharing it with the team there had been more than enough to ensure everyone had received an ample "Experience".

Opening the double doors and stepping inside, Emerson made his way through the busy hallways of the Marine CP. Emerson did his best to avoid the hustle and bustle of other troops as he took a flight of stairs. Stopping at Kane's door he paused for a moment as he listened in on a heated argument.

"Sir! With all due respect, that "Girl" is a threat!"

"Look, I understand your concerns but there is _**nothing**_ we can do right now. Until she steps out of line? We just have to trust that the Japanese know how to pick their friends."

"And when's that gonna be? When people start dieing? Maybe if the goddamn Japanese stopped trying to live out their fantasy adventures they'd see the lack of logic in what they're doing."

"Miller that's enough. I've been courteous enough to hear you out, but don't mistake my kindness for weakness. Remember they're the ones running the show here. We act out of line? We're done, and you know the world is just waiting for _**us**_ to fuck up, not them."

"...If you say so."

Things were quiet for a few moments until Emerson heard the sound of boots approaching the door. As he stepped out of the way and tried to look inconspicuous Emerson got a good look at the man who had been arguing with Kane.

Judging by his totally out of regulation facial hair, general swagger, and focused eyes, Emerson deduced he had to be a SEAL. He'd seen them enough times to know how they conducted themselves.

The SEAL didn't even bat an eye as he quickly walked past him, he was definitely pissed off.

Composing himself Emerson entered Kane's office and stood at attention in front of the Kane's desk. "Sir, Second Lieutenant Emerson reporting as ordered."

Kane sighed as he motioned towards one of the chairs in front of his desk. "At ease Lieutenant, please close the door behind you take a seat, and we can talk."

Closing the door Emerson made his way over to one of the chairs and took a seat as Kane began to talk.

"That was Chief Miller, good guy. His SEALS have been out there kicking ass and taking names since long before we came through the gate which is why I didn't completely chew his ass out for his outburst."

Emerson sat there he'd respond when he was given the opportunity.

"It seems that Itami has brought a potentially dangerous individual onto our base. Tell me Emerson, are you familiar with Rory Mercury?"

The lieutenant sat there for a moment. He heard the rumors of some crazy Gothic girl sticking her nose into everyone's business, he hadn't known what her name was however let alone actually get eyes on her.

"I've heard rumors sir, didn't know she was dangerous though. All I've heard is she's eccentric as hell and likes hanging out around the troops."

Kane folded his hands.

"Emerson what I'm about to tell you might shock you a little bit. Miller's team originally saw Miss Mercury during one of their recon sweeps, in their report they talk about her having superhuman speed and killing whole groups of men by herself. To be frank it sounds like a bad superhero film, but the scary thing is? More and more reports have been coming in about her _**exploits**_."

Emerson merely sat there and listened trying to comprehend what he was hearing.

"Even the refugees revere her, they say shes some sort of deity. Emerson were this anywhere else I'd dismiss this as superstitious folk tales, but take a look around us. Absolutely everything about this place adheres to the stereotype of a fantasy world and everyday our guys are running into evidence to support this. So you have to understand my suspension of disbelief when I say, I believe Miller."

Emerson saw the logic in that, his team had seen its fair share of craziness during their missions into the heart of the Special Region.

"Which is why I called you here Emerson. Miller thinks we should put this girl down, if not lock her up while we can. But I believe she could be a valuable asset if she were to fight by our side. I can't call her our ally for sure yet, which is why I want your squad to monitor her. I know how you MARSOC boys operate, this sort of mission is right up your alley."

Emerson secretly disdained babysitting jobs, but this was coming from the the big boss himself. It didn't get anymore important than this, but it also didn't mean he had to like it.

"Currently she's with a convoy we sent to Italica. This mission will make or break our view of her depending on how she acts, that been said _**your** _ mission is as follows. I want you to link up with that group under the pretense of you simply doing a supporting reconnaissance sweep in the area. Additional information will be sent down to you as we compile a mission brief."

Emerson nodded as he responded. "My boys will get it done sir, you can guarantee that. What if she turns hostile though?"

The colonel leaned forward as his face took a serious expression. "You'll know what to do, we believe Lieutenant Youji may not pull the trigger if he has to. He's a good soldier, but he's a little soft."

Emerson nodded again as he took the information in. Hopefully it wouldn't have to come to that, but orders were orders.

"Roger that sir."

Kane began shuffling papers as he took a pen out. "Well then you have your orders, standby for additional information to come down to you and your men as the day progresses. Dismissed."

Emerson stood at attention once more and took his leave. Just as he made his way to the door Kane stopped him

"Oh and Emerson, the Japanese don't know about this. Your mission is of the utmost secrecy, I'm not sure if you've been up to date with current events, but there's a real political shit storm going on back home. Something tells me its only a matter of time before the talks go down and more of our guys come through the gate. Until then, we need to play nice, once we get additional troops things are going to start changing around here. For better or for worse."

Emerson nodded and closed the door behind him. He then proceeded he made his way to the CP exit, throwing his boonie cover on and black Aviators as he went outside. Once he was a fair distance away from the CP, he took out a walkie-talkie from his cargo pocket.

"Cam, its Jay-Kay. Get the boys ready...we've got work to do."

* * *

 **EN ROUTE TO ITALICA  
**

Itami adjusted himself as he stared out the window at the passing Special Region scenery. Checkpoints were becoming increasingly common by now. The coalition was here in full effect now and Itami wondered how long it would be before they brought more than just their weapons.

Even now, some of the refugees back at Alnus were getting their first taste of the modern world; UGRs, MREs, and electricity to name a few. How much longer would it be until the allies really started colonizing this place? Part of him liked this world, an untouched region of simplicity and beauty. It gave him an idea of what Earth might have looked like before industry began.

Japan had more or less claimed this place as an extension of its own lands, but who were they to make this decision? How long would it be until they came under scrutiny just like the Americans did in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Itami shook his head, no they weren't going to subvert this place. They would dispose of the tyrannical Empire and either establish a better government or put someone else in charge. With the Marines here they'd do this the right way, the democratic way. Or so he hoped, suddenly his train of thought was interrupted by Kurata.

"I'm glad we're working with them again."

Itami couldn't help but smile at this remark. It felt like just yesterday there was an air of uncertainty between the two groups.

"Yeah, I am too sergeant."

"I love _**all** _ of them, they're like wild animals. Ruthless killers who trample all before them, in their iron chariots only a fool would dare stand in their way. They're _**my**_ kind of warriors."

Rory had giggled from the back as she overheard the two soldiers talking. Lelei also spoke her mind, her blue eyes staring out the front window at the tank driving in front of them. "They are the strangest group of warriors I have ever met, but I can tell their hearts are pure. They'll protect us and should that flame dragon return, they'll slay it for sure."

If Tuka had anything to say she certainly wasn't in the mood to do so. She had been relatively quiet throughout the drive, usually only muttering something to Rory or Lelei. Every so often she'd look out the back window at one of the M88 that was following staring at it with her zoned out eyes as she tried to make sense of what it was.

Suddenly the truck abruptly stopped throwing its occupants around. The tank that had been in front had stopped and was now moving off to the side of the road to join its fellows.

Soon Aldritch's voice came over the net. "RCT3 Actual this is Horseman One, be advised we have eyes in Italica. We're gonna push up and make sure everything is good to go. Recommend you and the Mike 88 stay back while we investigate over."

Itami picked up one of the handsets and radioed back. "Roger that Horsemen One, we'll stay put."

The occupants of Itami's vehicle watched as the tanks slowly lumbered off the side of the road. They creeped over hills and around treelines like big cats on the hunt. In truth that's exactly what they were doing.

Eventually the tanks could seen occupying a hill, their turrets just barely sticking up over the top of it as their guns scanned left and right.

It was almost comical like giant dogs sniffing around. If one could forget the fact that they had the power to completely destroy Italica on their own if they had to that is. Eventually Aldritch's voice came back over the net.

"RCT3 Actual, be advised no sign of combat at this time, but we are seeing some smoke and signs of older fights. Looks like intel was right they've been having it rough the past couple of days. Looks safe from here, but recommend you push forward with caution, over."

Itami copied back and radioed for the rest of his trucks to begin moving along the road towards Italica, hopefully things weren't as bad as they appeared.

* * *

 _Meanwhile  
_

 **ITALICA, CENTRAL MARKET DISTRICT  
**

Princess Piña Co Lada made her way to Italica's northern gate, moments earlier she had been rudely awoken with a bucket of water to her face. After days of fighting she was exhausted, things weren't supposed to go this way. Now here she was being told an unknown group had stopped in front of the main gate.

Days earlier her father, Emperor Molt, had tasked her and her Rose Order of Knights to ride out to Alnus. Reports had came in daily of the destructive power the invaders had brought with them through the gate. Scores of their soldiers and local leaders had met their end there and her father wanted to know _**how**_.

In truth she was reluctant.

Theher order she led had been nothing more than a childhood dream at first, the result of watching one too many plays and the desire to become warriors of legend. In a short time they had went from a group of kids to a order of knights. This was in no thanks to the teachings of Grey Co Aldo, a fabled warrior who had brought it upon himself to teach the children in the ways of the sword.

That been said, this was the order's chance to prove itself, a chance to show the emperor that they were more than just glorified show horses. Prior to making their way to Italica, Piña had met with King Duran, or rather what was left of him.

Upon his sick bed he lay there missing an arm and leg. He told her of the destructive power the invading army had brought with them, how he had foolishly invoked the wrath of one of their "Iron Chariots" when he had launched an arrow. Weakened and in critical condition, the old warrior was filled with rage. Not at the enemy, but at the Empire.

"The Imperial Army was defeated before we even fought, yes? The Emperor knew that and yet he called upon the armies of the allied nations anyway. We were a potential threat to the Empire, so they used the enemy to get rid of us. Princess the allied armies fought to the very end, but our true enemy was to our rear."

Piña had begged him to tell her more of what he knew, but in the end he had merely told her to go to Alnus and see for herself. Now here she was stuck in Italica fighting a completely different enemy, bandits.

Time and time again the bandits would test Italica's defense and time and time again they would be beaten back, but not without great cost. Everyone was at their wits end, and even though Piña had requested aid from her fellow knights they still had at least a day before they would arrive.

Piña made her way down the main avenue towards the northern gate, accompanying her was Grey Co Aldo and her close friend and fellow knight, Hamilton. As they reached the main square, Piña looked atop the wall and saw one of her other knights, Norma Co Igloo, shouting to the trespassers.

Meanwhile, the various militia and villagers waited with bated breathe, waited for yet another onslaught. As Piña and her two fellow knights approached the gate, they crowed around the peephole and looked through. The sight that awaited them, was one they weren't prepared for.

Three green armored wagons sat motionless down the road, for a few moments nothing happened as Norma continued to yell at them to identify themselves. Eventually a blue haired sorcerer and blonde elf made their way out of one the lead wagons. Shocked, Piña consulted with her fellow knights.

"A Lindonite sorcerer and an elf? True magecraft and spirit magic can make for a nasty combination."

Suddenly another figure emerged, one that truly shocked the three knights. It was Rory Mercury, the apostle of Emroy. Piña gasped as she felt her heart skip a beat, Rory's reputation as an unstoppable killer was well known throughout the land. Now here she was among unknown warriors.

Grey raised an eyebrow as he gave Rory a quick look over. "Is that the infamous Rory the Reaper?"

Confirming Grey's suspicions, Piña responded, not removing her eyes from the sight in front of her."Yeah. I saw her once before, at a national religious service."

Leaning in for a better look Grey voiced his concerns. "But would an Apostle of Emroy really join forces with a bunch of brigands?"

Piña shook her head. "If Rory's church had joined forces with the bandits, Italica would have fallen already. Not to mention the church would most certainly not stand for it."

Eventually another figured emerged from the wagon behind the three girls, clad in strange green armor he fell in behind them. Looking back at the villagers, the princess began to panic.

Did she let them in? Did she treat them as enemies? Italica had been her first test of leadership and thus far it was proving to be a stressful line of work.

On the other hand, with combination of those three girls and the strange warriors' rumored powerful magecraft. These newcomers could be the salvation Italica needed. Finally a knock came at the door, it was time to choose.

Piña looked back at the villagers, she saw the fear in their eyes and yet she also saw their confidence in her. They were putting their faith in her. Finally she made her decision.

"If they're not our enemies then we must get them on our side!" As she began to move the latch, Grey shouted a warning.

"Princess!"

Piña then proceeded to open the door with such haste it almost fell of its hinges.

"Welcome!"

She stood in front of the three shocked girls for a moment, they looked like they had seen a ghost. When Piña looked down she had seen the reason why.

In her haste she had knocked the man in green aside and as he lay there a small black box on his shoulder began to make noise in another language. Angry yells went on for a few moments then silence.

Eventually Piña heard a noise, it was faint at first, but then it grew closer. It sounded like the strong gales of a storm. Soon she began to hear another strange noise, like metal clanking together. As the princess looked off into the distance she grew paralyzed with fear.

Four large tan colored iron chariots had suddenly appeared, their heads pivoted left and right as their snouts searched around. One in particular had three long claw marks on its face, the marks that only something a flame dragon could make.

She had heard of this chariot in particular. Shortly before she and her knights had journeyed to Italica there had been rumors in the taverns about an iron chariot in particular that fought a flame dragon. One of the most prominent tales had been from a waitress.

"The earth shook all around as the two clashed! Every time the chariot roared its fiery anger, the dragon would howl in pain. It was like as if the gods were being defied themselves! The men inside that beast of iron fought with no fear or hesitation. Had it not been for them and their comrades, I wouldn't be telling this story."

And now here it was and it had brought its companions.

As the chariots all pointed their snouts directly at her and the militia atop Italica's walls, the princess stood their motionless.

She had invoked their wrath, just like King Duran had.


	13. Give Them No Quarter

**Before we get this shindig started, let me just give a shoutout to all my reviewers and followers who have bared with the revised story I've pushed out. RiptideZ in particular, man you are a life saver.**

 **Thanks to him I've been able to really go back and doctor up older chapters as well as get a good feel for how future chapters can shape up.  
**

 **Keen eyed readers may also notice that Emerson's team has been here and in full effect, thanks in no small part to Blueway. Do read his story Manifest Destiny, its an absolute must read if you're a fan of GATE. He's also the one who made the cover for me so mad thanks there.  
**

 **I'm gonna take this time and address a question that's been popping up _a lot_ in the reviews. In regards to Rory and the Special Ops. You have to understand that during Operation Enduring and Iraqi Freedom even the most well trusted ANA or Iraqi soldiers had to be looked at with a raised eyebrow.**

 **Hell I can remember a time where back on my FOB (Shirghazay) we had to go inside one of the bomb shelters. There was an ANA outpost right behind ours connected by a gate. They were getting ready to launch mortars so just about every Marine on the FOB was instructed to go inside the bomb shelters. "Just in case".**

 **Of course in the end they simply didn't launch them, curious eh?  
**

 **Anyways when your guys get shot in the back so many times or "accidentally mortared" etc., it tends to make you a little suspicious. That been said, Rory is no different. Marine command knows there's more to her than meets the eye and until she does something that ultimately earns their trust, can you blame them for being suspicious? Lessons learned the hard way have made our armed forces ever vigilant to anyone who just decides to offer help in a country they're invading.  
**

 **Another question that has popped up very frequently is the matter of reinforcements, while I'm never one for spoilers...I'll admit that yes, there will be more of a U.S. presence as Italica will soon show us why...  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Give Them No Quarter**

" _They told (us) to open up the embassy or "we'll blow you away." And then they looked up and saw the Marines on the roof with these really big guns, and they said in Somali, "Igaralli ahow" which means "Excuse me , I didn't mean it, my mistake._ "

Karen Aquilar, in the U.S. Embassy; Mogadishu, Somalia 1991

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 1100 HOURS, ITALICA  
**

Kincaid was just about to take a power nap when his ear was filled with the sounds of yelling and the impact of Elton's foot going into the back of his plate carrier.

"Sir?! Come in!"

"RCT3 Actual is down!"

"All tanks! Guns front, push to the front gate! Mike Eighty Eight go ahead and hold your position here!"

"Little John! Floor this bitch! Four Eyes get ready to rock and roll!"

In moments the tank had picked up speed and had formed an offensive line with the other three tanks. Kincaid attempted to stifle a yawn and looked through his sights. No smoke, no weapons fire, what the hell was going on?

As soon as the four tanks crested to an abrupt stop, Kincaid found the answer he was looking for.

Standing in front of the main entrance, the three girls and a red haired woman in elaborate armor stood around an unconscious Itami. All the tanks saw the scene it was impossible to miss. It was also impossible to miss the stunned reactions of everyone who had been given a pleasant armored surprise. The woman who had knocked Itami out in particular looked absolutely petrified.

Laughing over the platoon net, Parker's voice came loud and proud over comm.

"Heheh, Surprise Motherfuckers!"

"Surprise Motherfuckers!" Was probably the best way to describe anyone's reaction when they were snuck up on by tanks. A fact not lost on the platoon as each respective crew laughed in their tanks.

In moments Aldritch's voice came over the net, he already had a hunch what had happened. With a sigh he radioed to his tanks.

"All tanks stand down, be advised RCT3 Actual got knocked out. Method of injury...a fucking door, I'm going to dismount and see what's going on."

Meanwhile, the crew of _Here We Go Again_ had been laughing till their sides hurt.

"Nigga got shook!"

"Night night sir!"

"You lose! Good day sir!"

Savoring the moment, Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out a Rock Star energy drink. During the drive to Italica, this and many other treats had been in the box Itami had given them. Truly a man of his word Itami had won the respect of _Here We Go Again_ 's crew.

Kincaid popped the tab for drink and lit a cigarette as he stared through his sights at the developing scene. For a moment Tuka had been pouring water all over Itami's face, yelling and pointing at the red haired woman all the while.

As Aldritch made his way over to the scene, he looked at the woman, then at the three girls, and promptly gave Itami a kick in the side. Kincaid wasn't a master of lip reading, but he was sure Aldritch had said something along the lines of "Wake up butter cup."

Kincaid watched as Itami promptly sat straight up and shook his head, he looked absolutely lost. Soon everyone there was deep in discussion as another elaborately dress woman with brown hair started yelling.

To the tank crews, the whole scene had been an absolute comedy, it was like as if they were watching an old black and white silent drama. The proverbial icing on the the cake finally came when Aldritch promptly swiped Itami's shoulder mounted comm set.

"All tanks be advised...we have made contact with the princess, repeat we have made contact with the princess..."

Aldritch's voice faded out for a moment, anyone with sharp hearing could hear he had been asking the princess what her name was. After a few seconds he came back over the net.

"Princess...Piña Co Lada."

That had been the final nail in the coffin for the platoon. Especially for Kincaid in particular as he almost spat his drink all over himself, looking at the can for his drink and back at the woman he began to join the rest of the platoon in their laughter.

"Oh, oh my god! No way! No fucking way! Bro I'm done! I'm dead! This world is a fucking side twister!"

Anyone who had seen the can Kincaid was drinking from could tell it shared the flavor of a popular alcoholic beverage back on Earth. The same beverage many of the tankers there had consumed, the same one the princess shared her name with.

So it was no surprise that the entire tank platoon net had been filled with laughter.

Aldritch had been anything but amused, establishing contact with the princess had just upped the stakes on this mission. His annoyance with the platoon was very clear as he radioed back to them.

"When you clowns are done jaw jammerin go ahead and push down the road a few meters. I want good dispersion and a tight defense. I'm going to proceed inside with RCT3 Actual and figure out some kind of game plan, till then sit tight and kill the engines, but maintain turret power and radio contact. One Actual out."

The laughter quickly subsided over the network, but chuckles still remained inside the tanks' internal comms. Soon the sound of tracks grinding and engines going full throttle filled the air as the tanks slowly made their way down the road to establish a perimeter.

Meanwhile, the rest of RCT3's trucks remained outside Italica's gate as they waited for Itami's return.

 **XXXXXXX**

Everything had been a blur for Itami. From the moment he blacked out to the moment he woke up and saw an entire platoon of tanks looking like they were about to level Italica, he was absolutely lost.

When an annoyed Aldritch had extended a hand and lifted him up however, he quickly caught up to the speed on the current events. Princess Piña had been the one who knocked him out and a random accident had almost turned into a presumed act of hostility.

Hell of way to find the royal.

"You're very lucky Itami next time look before you leap alright? My boys can go from zero to one hundred real quick if you get my drift."

Aldritch dusted off a very confused Itami with the girls all huddled around. The lieutenant couldn't help but feel embarrassed for showing his ass in front of everyone.

Once both sides had figured out noone was going to harm the other things proceeded a lot smoother from then on. Making their way inside Itami took stock of the situation with Aldritch, so far intel had been right. Over the past few days Italica had most definitely been under siege and there was plenty of evidence to support this.

As the two officers and the three girls followed Piña and her knights they could see all the signs. Poorly trained militia moved around attempting to erect barricades while civilians attempted to show some semblance of normalcy throughout the ordeal. Regardless, all eyes had been on the strange new visitors as they journeyed through Italica's markets and winding streets.

Aldritch leaned over towards Itami as they continued their journey. "For a place that's of such tactical and commercial importance, I can't for the life of me understand why it's so poorly defended."

Itami nodded as he whispered back to Aldritch. "It's troubling if you ask me, maybe the Empire doesn't care about it's subjects at all. After all, we've seen how they needlessly spend the lives of their troops. Either way, this could bode well for us. With us coming to their aid and holding this area certainly we'll be on the right road towards winning the hearts and minds of the people."

Aldritch nodded in agreement this did indeed bode well for the coalition. Even if it was at the cost of so much needless suffering prior to their arrival.

As the group continued on their way through Italica, Aldritch began taking note of his surroundings. Should the enemy break through the main gate and spill into Italica it would be a time consuming process to clear them out of the densely packed buildings and narrow streets.

Time consuming, not impossible. In fact urban warfare was something Marines excelled at, having proven themselves in Fallujah Iraq. Of course should they need a little extra "Kick" there'd always be a tank behind them to level a building.

Hopefully it wouldn't come to that though.

Eventually the group made its way to an elaborate mansion, from gardens to elaborate architecture it showed the signs of wealthy nobility having ruler ship of Italica. Making their way inside and throughout the elaborate mansion hallways Piña began to fill them in on current events.

"This fortress city, Italica, stands strategically at the intersection of the Tessria and Appia Highways, making it a major commercial hub too. For generations it's been ruled by the counts of Formal, Imperial nobility. But when the last count died suddenly, the three daughters he left behind began struggling for dominance."

Aldritch cocked his head in curiosity, he swore he had heard that name before. Shrugging it off as nothing he continued to walk beside the others as the princess continued.

"Then the Empire sent the expeditionary force into the other world. The head of every family was expected to lead their troops into battle there...none returned. As a result the security situation of Italica deteriorated quickly to the point where defending this city has proven difficult."

As the princess continued, Aldritch leaned close towards Itami and whispered. He had _**definitely**_ heard that name before.

"Now that she mentions it I'm pretty sure Four killed that guy during the Ginza incident."

Itami cocked his head in curiosity as he whispered back. "How can you be sure?"

Aldritch sighed slightly and continued. "Well they said they engaged some sort of HVT before they arrived at the palace, Elton said he heard some name rhyming with normal being yelled out constantly by his troops as they gunned him down with the coax. It was funny because the guy had actually ran at the tank with a _**spear**_ , I mean really? What a noodle..."

Itami had merely shook his head in embarrassment as he gave Aldritch a look that said "Come on man really?"

Seeing this cue, Aldritch had merely given a nervous smile and ceased in his telling of the tale. Meanwhile, Rory had giggled during Aldritch's tale, it was certainly a funny coincidence to her.

Suddenly the group had stopped in front of a large door, before Piña opened it she turned to face the rest of the group.

"Beyond this door lies the current ruler of Italica and countess of Formal, Myui."

Itami and Aldritch both tensed up, in truth they had both completely zoned out as the princess had continued to talk, due in no small part to Aldritch's rambling. So when she opened the door and the group laid eyes upon a young child, it was no surprise that the two officers were shocked. This was not a good situation at all.

The countess couldn't have looked any older than ten. A fact further confirmed by Lelei as she murmured her suspicions of Myui turning eleven soon.

Definitely not good. Even with Piña leading the defense in Myui's stead, the situation still didn't bode well for future exchanges. How would a child know how to deal in politics? Let alone troop placement and potential FOB construction.

It was enough to make the two officers' heads spin. All the same, the two officers did their best to to maintain their bearing and give the countess the proper greeting befitting her position.

Eventually the group and the countess took their places at a long meeting table, as the discussions went on Itami and Aldritch both reinforced the fact that they were there to help and could most definitely solve the bandit problem. The princess wasn't buying it though.

In her defense, three girls with remarkable powers allied with a group of strange other worldly soldiers was enough to make anyone suspicious.

"So I must ask, are you under any sort of duress? Are these soldiers as peaceful as they claim?" Piña finally asked the three girls with a raised eyebrow.

One by one each of the girls answered the princess's question. First to the plate was Lelei, her expression was as blank as ever as she went to speak.

"Though their methods are outlandish and their weapons are fierce. Yes they have treated us well, in fact we accompanied them out of trust. They were the ones who saved us from the fire dragon. So far they have been nothing but accommodating."

Piña sat there as she carefully considered the young mage's response, turning her gaze towards Tuka she asked the same question.

"And what of you elf?"

Tuka slowly turned her head towards the princess, as if she just now realized she was even there in the first place. She looked at Piña with a look of confusion before merely nodding. "Yes...they do not hide anything from you. Everything you may have heard about them is true."

All well and good, but there was still one who hadn't answered. One who's answer held more power over anyone there, Rory. Before the princess could even ask the apostle simply answered her question with a devious smile on her lips.

"You would do well to hear them out, your father made a grave mistake in declaring war on them in the first place. You should accept their gratuity now lest you wind up like the others."

Both the officers looked at Rory wide eyed, hardly the best way to go about describing a delicate situation. Piña sat there shook for a moment and finally sighed. "Very well we will accept what you have to say."

As the discussions continued, it was also brought up that Itami and the girls had brought Dragon scales for trading, further providing an incentive for Italica's cooperation.

Though this came as a surprise to Aldritch, he quickly learned from an ever quiet talking Lelei that two days prior, a lieutenant Van Hauser had led a security team to escort herself and the others in gathering the scales outside Alnus. Evidently they were very valuable in the Special Region and secretly the lieutenant hoped there were still more waiting back at the base.

They would make for excellent souvenirs or even honor markings on the tanks.

Now that everything was laid out on the table, Aldritch saw his chance to show the princess and countess what he and his men could provide. Adjusting in his seat he maintained his bearing as he gave them his "sales pitch".

"Ma'am? My.." The lieutenant paused as he tried to find a word to best describe the tanks. "..Iron chariots can establish a defensive position at each road leading to Italica and engage the bandits long before they ever come in range of your walls. With your permission we'd like to do just that."

The princess's eyes went wide at this remark, this man was in charge of the iron chariots. Italica had nothing to fear with them on their side.

"Thank you, we have heard the tales of your iron chariots. Thankfully they are not here to render judgement as they have on the various others they have encountered. We would like it if they defended the path leading to the southern gate. Loo-tenant Itami? We would also appreciate it if you joined them."

It was a plan that made little to no sense, gathering all the firepower on one side. Perhaps the princess and the locals weren't comfortable being too close to the troops. All the same both officers swallowed their pride and merely nodded as one as they sounded off, better to just cooperate. If things got too dicey they could always just radio back to Alnus.

"Consider it done ma'am."

As the group rose from their chairs, Aldritch once again requested the use of Itami's comm.

"All tanks this is Horsemen One Actual, go ahead and fire up the hogs. We're going to be establishing a defense down the road from Italica's southern wall. When RCT3 Actual and myself arrive get ready to roll out. Mike eighty-eight, if you can, try see if you can squeeze inside the courtyard behind us. Last thing we need is to be babysitting you."

A series of responses echoed from the tank commanders. Once that was done, Itami reached his own troops over the net and relayed the plan to them. They would bring their smaller vehicles inside and set up at the southern gate's wall. With that the officers and the three girls got up from their seats and made their way towards the door.

As Aldritch made his way out, he paused to turn around and face Myui. "Italica will still be standing by tomorrow morning."

Giving her a warm smile and a thumbs up, he then took his leave. Meanwhile, the young countess merely cocked her head to the side and tried to mimic the sign.

 **XXXXXXX**

As Aldritch hurried down the hallway to join the others he began to converse with Itami. "So, the boys aren't going to be happy about this. Taking orders from a boot princess, what's worse is the fact that everything about this plan is suspicious. Were it up to me? I'd have a tank occupying each road leading in."

Itami merely sighed as he adjusted in his flak vest. "Not like we have much of a choice. If we're going to win the hearts and minds of the people, we have to show them we're willing to cooperate. This doesn't bode well for me though, I've been called to the diet summons back in Japan."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow. "Diet summons? What like some kind of political gathering? What for?"

"Evidently my government has a long list of concerns regarding the going of the campaign." The Japanese officer sighed before continuing. "Our people as a whole, it's. Well, it's been a while since we've had to go to war. Not everyone back home is so thrilled about the idea of us having to go be proactive in other places."

"Yeah, so I've heard. Anyways, you can have all that. I might be an officer, but politics can go fuck itself."

Aldritch chuckled as they made their way out of the building. "And you can tell em that at the Diet."

The officers laughed as they tried to enjoy the moment of solace while they could.

"Hey Aldritch."

"What's up?"

"What's a boot?"

 _You._

"Eh, just someone lacking in the experience department."

Some silence.

"So, am I a boot?"

 _Yes._

"Nah, you've done pretty well so far. Besides, you lose any chance of that title once you deploy."

 _Does curbstomping medieval even count? Wait, aren't I still a boot too then? The others too? Goddamnit Four._

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

 **1500 HOURS, EASTERN ROAD LEADING TO ITALICA  
**

"I'm only gonna ask you this once, how many of your buddies are on their way?"

Emerson maintained a calm demeanor as he dug his boot into the shattered shin of the now screaming bandit. Meanwhile, the rest of Team Two began to drag two bodies into the treeline. Staff Sergeant Masterson, the team's gunner and second in command merely stood there and watched with a big grin, his M240B laying flat across the back of his broad shoulders.

He lived for this shit.

Earlier on, Team Two had been making their way to Italica to link up with the convoy. Everything had been going according to plan until they had to dismount their ATV's and engage a small group of bandits making their way towards the city.

It was quick, but not relatively painless.

The first two bandits had been taken down with clean, quiet, and precise head shots courtesy of the team's Pointman, Corporal Talia Loke. Turns out, kicking down doors and having to clear rooms quickly made one very sure to be as proficient as possible with their firearms. Loke was certainly no exception.

Being the first female operator in MARSOC and having to prove yourself to idiot men may have been a factor in that as well.

The third bandit on the other hand, he had received the worst of it. He received two shots to both of his shins, thus denying him the notion of even trying to go anywhere.

Now here they all were, one big pissed off family.

"Listen shit for brains, I have much more important matters to be tending to. The kind that you're standing in the way of, so if you don't mind. Just answer the question and we can end this."

The bandit howled in agony and tried to talk between silent sobs, in his defense he still attempted to defy Emerson.

"Like I'd ever tell a goddamn _**Dark Elf**_."

Emerson sighed and removed his boot from the mans shattered shin as he picked him by his tunic's collar and began to choke him.

"Geez boss you really hate being called an Dark Elf huh? Try not to kill the guy before we get the information out of him huh? I mean not that this isn't fun to watch."

Masterson chuckled again as he raised an eyebrow.

Emerson sighed and turn to face his old friend as his grip tightened around the bandit's collar. "Listen Cam, we have a potentially dangerous individual with our guys. Shit for brains here and his dead buddies are probably the scouting element of a much larger force, and to top it off? I haven't had a smoke yet. So yeah I'm a little pissed and as of matter of fact yes, I hate being called a goddamn Dark Elf."

During their time in the Special Region, Emerson and his team had found out that there were two distinct varieties of Elves. There was the normal fair skinned kind famous from children's stories and then there was a darker breed. As it turned out Emerson's darker skin and pointier ears than most had actually placed him in with the latter's lot. Something that was anything but funny to a man from the Bronx.

Masterson merely chuckled and reached under Emerson's cloak and into his cargo pocket, pulling out a E-Cig he pressed it to Emerson's waiting lips. As Emerson took a long satisfying drag and exhaled the smoke into the bandit's face he sighed slightly.

"Thanks Cam, now back to business."

Masterson nodded and returned the E-Cig back to its rightful place as Emerson returned to his interrogation. "Listen I don't care how tough you think you are, your friends are all gonna die long before they ever get to Italica. You're about to join them so you might as well make your life useful before you go."

The bandit began to compose himself as he found the answer he hoped the strange dark elf clothed in dark robes and a green outfit wanted.

"More than enough to completely overrun them and you _**darkie**_ , you'll never stop us. _**You will all make perfect sacrifices in Emroy's name!**_ "

Emerson had heard that name before, their target Rory Mercury was supposedly an apostle of that very same god. If what little intel provided on her was to be believed. Shaking his head, he dropped the bandit onto the ground and called their corpsmen, Decker Lamareux over.

"Doc, what's your prognosis for this guy?"

An older Corpsmen slowly made his way over to both Emerson and the bandit. Turning on his helmet mounted flashlight and surveying the scene, he sighed. "Well...he's going to die. Either blood loss will get him first, or the fact that he can't actually make it anywhere to get treatment will."

Emerson nodded as he unholstered his suppressed Glock 19 and aimed it at the bandit's face. "Well you heard him, _**l** **uckily for you I'm humane**_."

The bandit didn't even have time to yell before a suppressed shot silenced him. Returning his pistol to its holster and promptly making a circling motion with his hand Emerson called the team over.

"Alright, situation's changed. We're gonna gonna give this guy's friends the Hitman warm welcome, Nutt how many Claymores you got?"

A younger looking Corporal, Donald Nutt, lowered his balaclava and removed his cloak to look over his assault pack. Shifting through its contents he pulled out six rectangular devices. "Well, got six here. Between the C4 we got back at the quads and the copious amounts of forty mike and frags, I'd say we can give them an _**explosive**_ welcome boss."

Emerson nodded as he began his plan, looking down the forest road all the while. "Alright here's the foreplay, Nutt I want you to set those Claymores along this road in intervals and the C4 in the brush. Any of these bastards try to make it off the road? You light em up got it?"

Nutt nodded and began to whistle a small tune as he set about planting the explosives. As he did so, Emmerson shook his head.

"Today sweetheart."

The Coproral laughed, not turning his head as he responded. "Geez boss stop riding me would ya? You're talking to a professional it'll get done."

"If I was riding you, you'd know it. Now hurry up butter cup."

Nutt merely laughed again and pretended to quicken his pace, as he did so Emerson shook his head and returned to conversing with the rest of the team.

"Alright Loke you're gonna make your way down the road and set up shop in the treeline. When you see those assholes; hold your fire, radio it up, and make your way back to us got it?"

Loke nodded her head, shouldering her Mk. 18 she began to make her way down the road. Facing the remaining two members, Emerson finished his plan.

"Doc just stick with Cam and I, we're gonna set up a firing position a little ways down the road from the explosives. We'll have to move the quads back too, gonna need a quick and fast way out of here."

Doc merely nodded his head and made his way over to the ATVs. Once he was out of earshot, Masterson turned to face his old friend. "What about the primary target?"

Emerson adjusted his cloak over his plate carrier as he unslung his Mk. 18. "We'll get to her. Guarantee you if she had tried something by now, we'd hear it over the net. Besides there's tanks there, she wouldn't get too far. Now c'mon, we gotta move these quads and get the big gun set up."

With that the two remaining members of Team Two made their way back to the ATVs to help Doc.

* * *

 **1700 HOURS, SOUTHERN ROAD LEADING TO ITALICA  
**

In the slowly diminishing light of the afternoon, down the road from Italica's southern gate and spread across it, four steel behemoths sat. Unmoving like giant stones they waited, waited for anyone foolish to incur their wrath. Inside and atop the behemoths was a much different story however, men sat and waited, absolutely bored.

Kincaid shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he continued to read, he had been cramped inside his gunner's station since the moment they had left Alnus. Thankfully he had been able to take his comm helmet off after Benitez had killed the engine. With the squawk box* set to blast and there being no outside noise to drown out radio transmissions the crew had joined Kincaid in giving their heads some much needed air.

For a while everything was quiet, most of the crew had been catching up on sleep in small shifts shortly after the platoon set into the defense. Of course with quiet comes boredom and with that comes problems all of its own. Problems like a bored Wilkes who just had to break the peace of internal comm.

"Yo, Kincaid...so whatcha you gonna do after all this is done?"

Seeing another conversation about to start, Kincaid promptly closed his manga and took his glasses off. Lighting up a cigarette he looked over at Wilkes, well rather his legs dangling into the turret as the upper part of him was sitting on his 240's skate ring.

"Cmon man we've been over this before; I'm gonna go to college, major in criminal justice, and go work with my dad in Diplomatic Security."

Wilkes chuckled as Kincaid watched smoke pour in from above no doubt he was already lighting up another cigarette. "Hah, you're hellbent on that shit huh? As for me? I'm gonna get out and make art man; graffiti T-shirts, music, you name it man. This industry needs more variety."

Kincaid merely chuckled as he took another drag. Wilkes was a visionary, something only people close to him knew. Peel back the layers of aggression and downright violent tendencies and there was a deep thinking man, a very goofy deep thinking man.

"Well Rampage, when you drop your first mixtape _Special Region Woes: Elves on Da Front Slope_ let me know. I'm sure it'll be a masterpiece."

At this remark the entire crew burst into laughter. Meanwhile, Wilkes had actually secretly added it to his list of potential album names. As the laughter began to die down, Wilkes looked over at Elton. "What about you Honcho? You never really talk about that shit, whats good with that nigga?"

Elton had been quietly playing with his K-Bar throughout the conversation, occasionally he'd etch a notch into his tank commander's cupola when he remembered another kill he had made. So far he was in the hundreds.

Seeing that it was his time to add some sagely knowledge he promptly returned his knife to its shoulder mounted sheath. Taking a swig from his hydration pack he promptly lit a cigarette as he turned to face Wilkes, leaning against the back of his cupola all the while.

"I'm gonna get the fuck out and go be a productive fucking father. Do a job I like doing and be there for Abigail, I'm sick and tired of running off and doing shit like this when I could be at home with my family."

Out of everyone on the crew, Elton was the least amused with the Special Region. For Kincaid it was a hurdle in front of his freedom, but at least he could indulge in some of his nerdish tendencies. For Benitez it had been a chance to prove himself as valued member of the crew. Wilkes on the other hand just didn't care, as long as he got paid and had fun he didn't care where he was. Elton had always been one to "go with the flow", he might put on a smile, he might even have some small measure of fun, but the one thing that always came first was family.

So it was also no surprise that most of the crew merely listened as he continued.

"We could have this campaign over in no time, I don't get it. This is war, not an insurgency. In the Gulf War we pushed forward, kicked ass, and called it a day. Hell even in Iraq, we pushed all the way to the capital and took Saddamn's goddamn statue down. At least there we weren't too occupied with hearts and minds until after the fact. Here it feels like we're just playing patty cake while the real enemy is building the strength it'll need for another push. Meanwhile; Russia's in Syria, ISIS is all over the goddamn place, everyone else is fighting their own personal battles, and our country is pushing out the biggest generation of self entitled ass clowns."

"Then there's the elections." Kincaid chimed in.

All the tankers groaned, they didn't need to be reminded of that. With Trump and Hillary Clinton running, the divide between Republican and Democrat had never been greater. Not even those who served were free from it either and there had already been multiple cases of arguments escalating between even the closest of battle brothers.

With all the fighting, they had almost completely forgotten about that shit show.

For a moment each of the crew members was filled with doubt. Pushing aside all the events that had led up this point, Elton did have a point. Standard operating procedure had been cast to the side multiple times and so far their work here wasn't producing any substantial results. Fantasy world or not, many of them couldn't disagree there weren't other places they'd feel happier at or at least feel more of use.

Suddenly a voice none of the crew had been expecting came from the bowels of the driver's station. Benitez had been quietly listening most of the time, more or less cause he had been reading a manga of his own in what little light his instrument panels were providing. Eventually he had merely given up on it, opened his drivers hatch to get some air, and lit a cigarette while he gave his input.

"We're doing good work here. We're at the forefront of one of the greatest scientific discoveries of our our generation! Imagine what this world could do for us and we could do for it. We're just scratching the surface! For all we know we could be in an entirely different dimension! I understand you want to be home, I don't want to answer for the crew when I say this, but I'm sure they do too. I never thought in a million years that my enlistment would be this eventful. I mean, I also didn't think I'd be responsible for so much death so quickly, but I'm glad I got to do it here and with you guys."

For a moment the crew was silent as they let his words sink in. Benitez the new guy, the not so outspoken, had just spoke his mind about the entire experience so far. In the span of a little under half a year he had went from just another rookie, to a valuable experienced member of the crew and more importantly, family. That made his word just as important as anyone else's in the tank

Elton flicked his previous cigarette butt away and went to light up another as he watched the sun begin to set in the distance. As he took a long drag and stretched his legs, he spoke down to Benitez.

"Bro, why'd you enlist? And more importantly, why the fuck tanks?"

Things went quiet for a moment as Benitez searched within his heart for the answer he already knew.

"Well after I moved to the states from the Dominican Republic, I grew to love our country. In the old country I was raised to work hard both with my hands and my mind. It pained me to see how a country with so much opportunity was filled with so many people who wouldn't do that. So I figured, fuck it. Might as well go enlist and get back to working with my hands."

The rest of the crew nodded their heads, that was a good enough answer for them, but now it was Kincaid's turn to ask a question.

"Dog, do you believe in the mission here?"

Benitez took a moment before responding. "Yeah man I do, when I see how the refugees back at Alnus look at us? With every fiber of my being."

The other veteran tankers took a moment to look at each other, smiles adorned each one of their faces. Taking the lead, Elton responded to Benitez's statement.

"You'll have to excuse us man, Afghan...well it broke down our motivation more or less, you better hold onto yours while you still have it. Lest you turn into us, but that been said? If you believe in the mission, then fuck it I do too."

Wilkes chuckled as he voiced his opinion too. "Well shit, long as I get me some ass out here. I mean a guy can dream right? Shit, I'm a believer too then!"

Kincaid rolled his eyes lit up another cigarette and took a long drag, as he expelled a long cloud of smoke he looked up at Wilkes.

"Oh so _**now**_ you want to fuck a fantasy chick? Dog, how're you gonna pull some IHOP shit and flip flop like that?"

"The same way you beat off to anime dog."

"Dude, eat a dick that's a fuck ass lie and you know it. As for the mission? Fuck it, I'm down like Charlie Brown."

At that moment the creeping doubt had been pressed aside and replaced with fire. The fire to destroy the enemy and learn more about this world, the fire to leave a positive mark in a way they had never been given the opportunity to before.

Now it was Benitez's turn to ask the same question as he let out a long cloud of smoke.

"So why'd you guys enlist? And why tanks?"

If Benitez had seen it each of the other crew members had put on the same face of puzzlement as they looked deep within themselves. As ever Elton was the one to take the lead.

"Honestly? I have no idea, I just didn't have anything better to do I guess. I was young, stupid, and I didn't have a sense of direction. To answer your second question? I wanted to be artillery, somehow my recruiter fucked that up and I got stuck in tanks."

Kincaid and Wilkes both groaned at the same time, artillery was a thankless misunderstood MOS. It was also the next step up in comparison to being a grunt, meaning it was a miserable four years if you weren't motivated. Benitez merely sat there, in truth he was a little surprised. He didn't think his tank commander would have such an unexciting back story, of course he still hadn't heard from the other two yet.

Realizing it was his turn, Wilkes laughed and spoke down into the turret. "Wanna know why I enlisted? Money and I was bored, the end. Also I didn't pick tanks either, but I know someone who did..."

Kincaid sighed, he knew it was his turn. Lighting up another cigarette and taking a swig from his hydration pack, he went to share his claim to fame.

"Well shit, guess it's my turn. Pops was a Marine for twenty one years, always looked at him as a hero. He was...my protector, my own knight in shining armor I guess. Being raised around Marines overseas didn't help much either in that regard, I guess you could say it was only a matter of time before the Corps really rubbed off on me. Everything changed once nine eleven happened, I was young, but _**very**_ angry."

The gunner paused for a moment, thinking about that faithful day. "Shit man, it just pissed me off you know? I felt like someone had to go fuck those assholes up."

Wilkes and Elton had heard this story before and as sappy as it was, Kincaid also knew how to be motivational. So in the end they merely listened, they listened to a story that never got old.

"Our country might not always have done the right thing, lord knows the path to ruin is paved with good intentions. But fuck, who else is going to step up to the plate huh? Who else is going to bring the boot down? No one can do it like we do, I may not favor my job too much, hell lord knows how badly I want to get out. But I'll _**never** _ regret the decision I made and so long as I'm here with all of you? I'll keep fighting until I can't do it anymore."

Benitez sat there for a moment in silence. It was at that point he knew he loved his crew, every last one of them. These were the men he knew he could put his life in the hands of. Of course the tender moment didn't last long as Wilkes once again spoiled the moment.

"All of you that was Jasper Kincaid, twenty four from Germantown Maryland! Give him a warm round of applause!"

Kincaid rolled his eyes as the crew began clapping, taking a long drag he let out a puff of smoke and his irritation. "Yo ya'll can fuck off, see If I ever tell you heathens a fucking bed time story again."

Laughter filled the tank as the crew shared in Kincaid's irritation. This went on for a while until Elton had a moment of realization. Springing out of his cupola he made his way to the back of the turret, meanwhile, Wilkes merely watched him with a raised eyebrow.

Elton lifted the tarp covering the bustle rack, inside he rummaged around for a while until he found what he was looking for. As he made his way back to his cupola, he made his way over to the armored shell for tank's sight system. Wilkes continued to watch as Elton began to set up a small camera, in truth Wilkes had known what it was the moment he went to grab it.

"Bruh, is that Gopro? When the fuck did you get that?"

As Elton began duct taping the small camera he turned around with a smile visible even in the fading light. "Dude I've been had this, I just uh...forgot about it."

Suddenly Kincaid's voice rang out from the turret. "Dude what the fuck?! That would have been pretty nice when we fought Puff the magic dragon, or I don't know all the other shenanigans we got into during that Coda trip!"

Elton merely rolled his eyes as he depressed a button on the side of the camera, switching it to on. Once that was done he made his way over to his cupola and slowly lowered himself back into it. Kicking Kincaid in the shoulder, he responded to the previous outburst.

"Says the guy who forgot to bring his wallet that one time we went clubbing in Wilmington, we were paying for your ass all night."

Kincaid merely shrugged, these were facts.

Things went back to being quiet for a while, the only sound being the occasional strange animal noise in the distance, or the sound of a cigarette being lit. Benitez sat in his driver's station and gazed out from his open hatch at the Special Region countryside. A question had been nagging him since the first couple days he got to know his crew, now seemed a good a time as ever to ask.

"So, Four Eyes. I've seen the arm bands you and Rampage wear. Who's Raymond?"

Silence followed for a few moments as the veteran tankers let the name echo in their minds, as it echoed old memories slowly began to come to their minds. Eventually Kincaid lit another cigarette, he hated telling this story, but he knew there was no point in hiding it from a member of the crew.

"Raymond? You mean who _**was**_ Raymond? Raymond was the gunner on Rampage's and I's tank in Afghanistan."

Benitez sat there for a moment, he had a hunch that Raymond was a fallen Marine. He just hoped he hadn't stepped out of line and asked a question he shouldn't have asked. Before he could apologize, Kincaid continued.

"It's alright, you have every right to know. We don't keep secrets on this tank, no crew should ever do that. Raymond was more than a gunner, he was family. He came out of tank school with Wilkes and I. You would've liked him, he was a lot like Honcho."

As Kincaid began to tell his story, Wilkes quietly looked off into the sunset. For just a moment it reminded him of the sunsets he would watch with Kincaid and Raymond in Afghan. At that moment the man known as Rampage, began to slowly feel tears come down his face. Wilkes felt Elton's gloved hand slowly rub his shoulder, Elton may not have been in their platoon, but Raymond was just as much a brother to him as anyone else in their old company.

Kincaid kept a straight face, he was trying his best to not lose his composure. Taking another drag, he continued.

"So um...we were going on a road march to Elton's FOB. Pretty standard stuff, pick up some supplies, shoot the shit, that sort of stuff. Anyways it was quiet as usual you know? Looking back at it, I guess it was our fault you know? We got lax, no one seemed to pay any attention to the cocksucker who was mean mugging us as we hit an intersection."

Benitez sat there and listened. He didn't want to, but he felt himself picturing the scene all the same as Kincaid continued. He could hear his voice slowly beginning to move towards anger.

"So, we turned at the intersection. I turn around and see that old boy was gone, just as I was about to call it up we got hit. It was so sudden, no warning, just...boom."

Benitez could hear Kincaid's voice begin to strain, he could tell he was trying very hard not to lose his bearing.

"When I came to, he was just...quiet. I tried to move him but his head just...god, _**fuck!**_...right. The blast broke his neck, he died instantly. Our tank commander was knocked out, so it was just Wilkes and I, but that's not the end of it. Not even moments after that, we started taking fire; RPG's, small arms, fuck even grenades. Problem was, they were coming from behind us. Bastards were smart, knew we couldn't depress the gun and hit em accurately if we traversed around. Most of the platoon was a little ways up too, so we..."

Suddenly Wilkes's added to the story. "So we grabbed any personal weapons we could find, and we killed every last one of them. They tried to climb aboard too, so we smashed their fucking faces in. For Raymond."

Kincaid slammed his hard knuckle gloved hand on the turret wall. "For fucking Raymond!"

Elton blew a long cloud of smoke as he stared at the sky. "For Raymond..."

For a moment things were quiet, in the end Raymond had been avenged. That was more than any Marine could ask for, but it was still a pain that lingered on. Suddenly Kincaid's voice broke the silence. "Man, that event continues to burn into our minds from time to time. It's not as bad as it used to be, but that's because we learned something, something I want _**you**_ to learn."

Benitez sat there quietly, he wasn't sure if he should respond or not. Kincaid answered that question for him.

"When you lose someone, or when you find yourself with your back against the wall. Fight, fight as hard as you can. The best thing you can do for those you lose in your life is to live in a way that they would be proud of. If we're out here, and one of us dies? Don't you dare let that shit hold you back. You pick up your fucking weapon and you keep fighting, cause we'll be watching you. If you continue to live and fight, that's all you'll need to do to honor us."

Kincaid looked at his armband for a moment before continuing. "Don't be like that elf, don't turn into a fucking vegetable. You tracking?"

"I'm tracking."

Elton took his comm helmet off and ran a hair through his matted hair before giving Wilkes a tap on the shoulder. "Yo put something on this quiet is breaking my vibes."

* * *

 **Wilkes's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 15: Al Green "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart?"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _I can think of younger days when living for my life_  
 _Was everything a man could want to do_  
 _I could never see tomorrow, but I was never told about the sorrow_

"Yo bring that fucking box down here, I'm starving and I'm not in the mood for MREs."

Once the snacks courtesy of Itami had been distributed, the crew once again found themselves back in the mundane routine of the defense.

"Yo and fucking make sure you bring the DVE down to Little John. Last thing we need is numbnuts driving us into a ditch."

Thus the Horsemen waited there.

 _And how can you mend a broken heart?_  
 _How can you stop the rain from falling down?_  
 _How can you stop the sun from shining?_  
 _What makes the world go round?_  
 _How can you mend a this broken man?_  
 _How can a loser ever win?_  
 _Please help me mend my broken heart and let me live again_

* * *

 **2400 HOURS, ITALICA'S SOUTHERN WALL  
**

Itami sighed from his position atop the southern wall as he looked out at the four tanks spread across the road, if there was one thing he despised just as much as any other soldier, it was standing around bored.

He knew right from the moment they were posted what Piña's plan was, RCT3 and the Horsemen were going to be the bait. The princess knew full well what kind of capabilities they had, why bother sending them to any of the other known locations attacked when they could be sent to the one that hadn't been attacked yet? The one most likely to be attacked if the bandits came back?

They could handle the bandit problem without anyone else having to bat an eye, Aldritch had took note of this earlier and had requested a tank to be posted at every entrance just in case. Hundreds of bandits or not, they weren't in possession of a single armor defeating weapon. If one tank found itself overwhelmed it could easily have its wingman there in moments.

In the end they simply had to comply with the princess's demands, after all it would bode well to show Italica and the princess that cooperation would be beneficial for both parties involved. This didn't bode well for Itami however, his superiors were anything but thrilled to know he would have to stay an extra night.

So with his men occupying overwatch positions atop the wall, they bunkered down and waited for an attack that many doubted would even come. Meanwhile the four trucks and the M88 sat idle down below them, spread out in such a way to not block any impending traffic leaving or entering the southern gate.

Itami had just finished mounting his NVGs, courtesy of Rory's help when he heard it. From the east a loud booming sound rang out, the sound of an explosive going off. The soldiers of RCT3 jumped and began looking for the source of the sound, for a few moments all was quiet. There wasn't any overhead flights in the area and they certainly didn't know of any units operating on foot, so to say RCT3 and the now alert tanks were dumbfounded was an undestatement.

Just when Itami was about to radio to Aldritch, a cacophony of automatic fire began followed by more explosions. This wasn't part of the plan, something or someone was being engaged from the east.

Fumbling with his handset, Itami radioed to Aldritch as heard the tanks begin to start up.

"Horsemen one, this is RCT3 Actual. You hearing this?"

Itami looked down at the tanks as they began to traverse their turrets erratically, they were 100% alert. After a few moments Aldritch's voice came over the net, meanwhile the sounds of a distant battle continued.

"Yeah we hear it, sounds like a 240 and some det charges. I'm gonna radio it up and see what's going on, I'm sure someone will pick us up."

Itami waited as Aldritch began to try every station, meanwhile Rory began to moan. Looking over Itami could see that the young apostle was trying her best to not pleasure herself, she twitched and spasmed as if every nerve in her body was going off. She held her sides as she looked at the sky, meanwhile her display began to unnerve Itami's men. They stood there absolutely unsure of what to do, meanwhile Tuka merely covered her eyes embarassed.

Rory continued her display as she began to raise her hand to the sky. "Why...why aren't they _**here**_?"

Just as Itami was about to attend to her, Lelei's voice rang out quiet against the sounds of battle.

"When death occurs around Rory, the souls of the fallen pass through her body on their way to Emroy. It affects her the same way an aphrodisiac might."

Kurokawa had just made her way over to check on the Apostle when Lelei shook her head. "There's nothing we can do for her, all she can do now is fight."

Suddenly a voice rang out over the net, one nobody in the group recognized.

"Any station this net! Any station this net! This is Hitman Actual! We are currently due east from Italica on the main road! Be advised, we are currently engaged with a sizable enemy force! Estimated to be at at least Battalion level strength! We're doing all we can to hold them back, but these bastards are tenacious! We're gonna continue to harass them for a few more minutes! Once that's done we'll-"

The transmission suddenly cut out, it was like as if the signal had been jammed. The sounds of the distant battle began to intensify and for a moment Itami was unsure of what to do. The answer came when Aldritch's voice suddenly came over the net.

"RCT3 Actual, Four's Golf has informed me he's heard that callsign before. That's MARSOC, our boys. I'm going to send Three and Four over there to help em egress back here. Get your boys ready, the fights coming."

Itami grabbed his handset and went to radio back to Aldritch. "One, what about the southern wall? If the enemy attacks from multiple sides, two tanks and my squad may not be enough.."

Before Itami could finish Aldritch's voice yelled back, he was pissed. "You doubting my Marines?! We don't leave our own behind! Unless you have a better plan I suggest you let us do our goddamn job! I'm gonna get ready to send this back to Alnus."

Itami stood there dumbfounded, what was this sudden aggression? He had only voiced his concerns and Aldritch had just _**snapped**_. The normally calm and collected officer had just stunned not only Itami, but the rest of his team as well.

In the end all the officer could do was quietly respond and watch as two of the tanks began to peel off and head towards the sounds of chaos, meanwhile Rory heard this, mustering all she could she stood up spasming all the while. She reached her hand out to the tanks and moaned.

"P-please, take me with you."

* * *

 **2430, EASTERN ROAD LEADING TO ITALICA**

 **"** God damnit! Something's jamming our fucking comms!"

Emerson let off another burst of suppressed carbine fire at the oncoming horde of bandits. By now it had gotten dark enough to the point where the only light provided was the torches from the bandits and the muzzle flashes from Masterson's 240. In the green glow of Hitman's NVGs, they could see everything clear as day.

Meanwhile, Doc took up position between the two men, laying prone on the ground he let off accurate fire in short controlled bursts. Marines weren't the only ones who could fight, their corpsmen were just as tenacious. Ever the optimist Doc voiced his concerns.

"Gee you think?!"

Emerson merely shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Don't have time for your wit doc, so unless you got something helpful to say I suggest you keep firing!"

Hearing his Mk.18 run dry, Emerson took the time to take cover behind a tree as he quickly went for a reload. The enemy still had crossbows and various other ranged implements, though they certainly weren't doing a good job of hitting much of anything with them.

Still better safe than sorry, Emerson promptly dropped his empty magazine into his hip mounted dump pouch as he slammed a fresh one in. Once that was done he promptly peeled off the tree and into cover behind another one near Masterson.

Over the roar of the 240, Masterson voiced his input.

"Bullshit! They don't have any jamming equipment! They're fucking medieval bandits! Fuck, reloading!"

Masterson promptly went prone into some nearby bushes as he began the arduous process of loading the bulky machine gun. Meanwhile, the rest of Team Two continued to pour fire at the oncoming mass. They needed to keep the suppression up until the 240 could continue its reign of destruction.

There was nothing clean about it, it was just an unending mass of bodies. Men trampled each other as they struggled to reach the source of the strange lights. Every so often they'd catch a glimpse of green eyed wraiths in the vegetation. Clad in brown cloaks they continued to let loose their magic. Blood drenched the soil and the nearby vegetation as bandits were cut down piecemeal.

Every so often an explosion would go off as some poor soul attempted to sneak around the sides, body parts scattered to the wind as men were cut into pieces from the Claymores' ball bearings. The good news was, the enemy had only made it past the first two defensive lines, the bad news was they only had two more to get through till the Marines had to break off and get out of dodge.

Things were _**not**_ supposed to go this way, if Loke had been able to transmit the bandits location earlier things would be going a lot smoother. Instead Emerson and the rest of Team Two got some sort of garbled transmission followed by a sprinting Loke with a horde of bandits close behind her. Now here they were, fighting a vastly superior foe in terms of numbers.

Unfortunately for the bandits, this was the sort of thing MARSOC excelled at. Guerilla warfare.

Far out of the kill box on the left and ride sides of the killbox, Loke and Nutt hammered at the enemy mass. For the enemy, all they could see was dark shadows darting in and out of the vegetation. For all their tenacity and ruthlessness, the bandits didn't dare approach the shades in the darkness, many had already tried only to vanish without a trace in front of their fellows.

Suddenly another set of Claymores went off, the bandits had once again broken through another defensive line even if it was at the cost of hundreds of casualties. Rather, what was supposed to be hundreds of casualties. As the dust cloud slowly settled the Marines had to do a double take. Only a few lay dead this time there was plenty that made it through.

Something was _**wrong**_ , Nutt was a prodigy when it came to demolitions, there was no way those explosives were wired wrong. Having a sort of epiphany, Emerson sent a burst at the bandits, instead of fresh bloody holes opening up in their bodies, the bullets seemed flicker against some sort of blue translucent barrier.

Emerson didn't want to test the theory any further, something or someone had erected some sort of barrier. It wasn't having too much success against the projectiles, but it _**could**_ counteract blast waves. Meanwhile, the rest of the team looked on shocked, what they saw looked like something out of a science fiction movie.

So like any good science fiction movie it was time for the military to fight against the unknown.

"Loke, Nutt, hit em on both sides! Masterson, Doc, with me! Pour fire from the front!"

In a normal battle yelling commands in English would be nothing short of asinine. This wasn't a normal battle and the enemy most certainly didn't understand English. In fact all the bandits heard was loud gibberish coming from the darkness and that was nothing short of unnerving. So when Emerson gave the order and the bandits started getting cut down piecemeal again, there was nothing that could stop it.

Meanwhile, the blue translucent barrier would pop up erratically, sometimes it'd go to the front and sometimes it'd go to whichever side it felt like. This game of musical chairs went on for a while until finally the bandits had quite enough. Letting lose a mighty war cry, they charged forward, at this point they were sick and tired of the games, they knew they had the numbers and knew full well they could just overrun whatever had been giving them so much trouble.

Like a living tidal wave they began to surge forward with such intensity that even the battle hardened Raiders were taken by surprise. Before Emerson could yell the order to fall back, a large explosion shook the ground. The front of the bandit mass simply vanished in a cloud of smoke falling debris and body parts.

The only noise that could be heard for a while was the sounds of the dying and the debris slowly raining back towards the earth. The operators stood there for a moment stunned, even Nutt couldn't explain what the source of that explosion had been. He scratched his head for a moment, did he overdo it with the C4?

Suddenly they heard a sound, a sound some of the team knew all too well. Jet turbine, the straining hydraulics of a traversing turret, and the slow methodical grind of track pads moving over the earth. As Emerson adjusted his NVGs and looked behind, he saw the source of Hitman's salvation. Two tan M1A1 Abrams tanks stood side by side like triumphant ships against a stormy sea.

Hitman didn't get to admire the scene for too long as the two tanks opened up with every machine gun they had, the night lit up clear as day as the flashes of machine gun fire revealed the tanks in full display. Suddenly one of the closest tank's hatch opened up and a balaclava clad tank commander yelled out over the roar of machine gun fire.

"Hey get your asses in gear! We're heading back to Italica now! Our XO is at the southern gate, link up with him there!"

Nodding his head Emerson yelled over the sounds of the two tanks pouring everything they had into the mass of bodies. "Raiders...we...are...leaving!"

As one, each of the operators began to bound back to the ATVs, pouring what they could into the oncoming horde. Like a well oiled machine, two would egress while two others would lay suppressing fire, the bandits certainly weren't gaining any ground that was for sure. Meanwhile whatever had erected the barrier before seemed to be straining with keeping back the massive amount of high velocity munitions directed at it. The barrier would sputter and falter every so often, everytime it did a large group of bandits would be torn in half or made into corpses full of impact craters.

As Emerson made his way past the tank he took note of the three large claw marks on it. So the rumors were true, tanks had made contact with the local fauna and had kicked its ass several kinds of good. As he joined the others the tank commander's voice boomed after him.

"Hey Kincaid and Wilkes say wassup!"

Emerson merely shook his head, those were names he hadn't heard or worked with since Afghanistan. As he joined the rest of the team in mounting the ATVs, he turned the ignition and gunned his ATV to the front. With a spinning hand and arm signal he led the team back towards Italica gunning the small quads through the night, Emerson took one last glance over his shoulder at the two tanks. They had begun to form a column and were reversing down the road, the lead tank pouring everything it had at the bandits.

After a few minutes of driving down the winding forest path, Emerson tempted fate and tried to reach his team over his boom mic. Not long after he did so, Masterson's Texan accent came over the net.

"Sweeet jesus, talk about a close call huh? Tanks come to the rescue yet again!"

Not skipping a beat, Nutt's voice came over the net in short order. "Hey what did that tank commander say? Sounded like as if they knew you."

Emerson waited a moment before responding. "Yeah they do, Masterson and I worked with Second Tanks two years ago in Afghan. Didn't think they'd be pulling our asses out of the fire again here though."

As the team left the forest road and entered the open country side, they began to see the dark silhouette of Italica grow in the distance. Giving it a wide berth, they began to go off roading through fields and over ravines. No sense in knocking at the front door and getting a face full of arrows by spooked guards.

Emerson took one last glance over his shoulder, he couldn't see the tanks, but he could certainly see the flashes of light from their gun and cannon fire.

 _Those bandits have no idea the kind of shit they just stepped in._

 **XXXXXXX**

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck."

Kincaid traversed left and right as he attempted to use his coax in a sawing motion, all he could see was an endless tide of white thermal limbs and bodies tumbling end over end.

It was like trying to cut water with a knife, no matter how much he poured into it, the tide wouldn't cease. To make matters worse, outbound comm was down. Every time either of the tanks tried to radio back to the other section, they were met with static and white noise.

The fact that the two tanks weren't reversing at top speed didn't help either, meanwhile the tide of bandits seemed to be creeping closer and closer.

"Jesus christ! They aren't stopping!"

Kincaid wasn't scared, there was nothing they bandits could do to harm the tank. Either way he didn't want to play back scratcher and start having to fend angry bandits off the tank.

"Rampage! Give me an MPHE!"

In seconds Wilkes had opened the ammo door and slung the large 120mm round into the breach, with a loud clunk the breach closed and Wilkes armed the gun.

"Get some! Fuck em up Four Eyes!"

The MPHE or Multi Purpose High Explosive was meant to be a building buster, lessons learned during intense urban fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan had called for a much larger "boom" than current shells could provide.

Though it was designed for buildings, it also dealt with infantry in _**very**_ satisfying ways as the bandits soon learned. With a smile and a quick range check, Kincaid sent the round at the horde and watched as an entire three platoons' worth of bandits were simply vaporized. When the dust cleared, all that was left was a massive crater, that was soon filled to the brim with even more bandits.

Elton frantically tried to radio back to Aldritch or Parker, no matter how many times he tried. The jamming wouldn't stop, trying to stick his head out of his hatch every so often to see where they were going wasn't helping either.

" _ **Christ,**_ Hurry up Three!" Elton tried to wave at Parker, but so far the other tank commander was so engrossed in looking behind his tank to direct Dunn that he wasn't paying attention.

Eventually Parker's tank began to gain speed, as Elton looked off into the distance through his NVG, he could see why. They were just about to hit open terrain, there they could use the tanks speed and open ground to their advantage. Yelling into internal, Elton directed Benitez.

"Fucking floor it Little John, we're about to hit open terrain! We need to get out of range of their jamming and start coordinating reinforcements!"

Benitez merely turned the throttle grips for his streer throttle controls to max and felt the tank lurch violently as it began to shift into gear and pickup speed.

For just a moment Elton was finally able to reach Parker before the static came back over the platoon net. "Three, we need to turn around and floor it to the eastern gate!"

Elton searched around in the dull green glow of his NVG, Three had disappeared. Elton began to frantically search around, how could something so big get lost so quickly. As Elton began to look his right he finally realized what had happened.

In its haste, Parker's tank had somehow went full speed down a small hill into a mud filled ditch near a low lying river. The tank's tracks spun as its engine whined its frustration. Soon the sounds of heavy clanking began to sound and the tank merely stopped, if it continued to struggle it would throw track.

Suddenly Parker's frantic voice filled with net on all channels. "This is Three! I'm stuck! Repeat, my tank is stuck! We need a fucking tow!"

Elton promptly directed Benitez to stop the tank, yelling back over comm to Parker he tried to reassure the frantic tank commander.

"Three this is Four, we're right above the hill to your left. We're not going anywhere, just stay calm. Ah fuck contact front!"

In short notice the entire bandit horde had closed the gap and were running towards the two tanks and as they got closer a large section of the horde began to peel off and head towards Italica. Benitez began coming over the tank's internal comms, he could see the horde through his driver's visual enhancement system.

"There's so many of them...I...I don't think we have enough ammo for them all."

Soon the rest of the crew came over the net, putting aside the doubt in Benitez's voice aside.

"Nut up or shut up! You guys feeling this!? I am in the fucking zone!"

"Yo let's fucking wreck these mother fuckers!"

All battle motivation aside Here _We Go Again_ was in a tough situation needing to defend not only itself, but its stuck wing man from being overrun as well. To make matters worse, their current state of affairs had allowed half the horde to advance on Italica unopposed. Elton saw the situation for what it was ** _,_** a royal pain in the ass. ** _  
_**

That didn't mean all was lost, in fact a stuck tank was just as dangerous as a moving one. In moments _Cry Sum Moar_ began to send its deadly payloads at the oncoming hordes. Meanwhile, _Here We Go Again_ mowed any and all bandits who dared to cross its path or attempted to charge at its wingman.

The bandits may have had the numbers and tenacity, but they most certainly didn't have the firepower.

Bravo Section would give them no quarter.

* * *

 **Jargon/Lingo**

 **Squawk Box-Allows us to listen to the radios through a speaker basically.**


	14. Reap What You Sow

**So here we are, the second half of the Italica shit show.**

 **I had to redo this chapter at least four times, and that's not including the fact that I had to go through my entire story with Grammarly, there were some serious issues in early chapters. Which is why it took me so long to get this chapter out, I won't even get started on my newest story I'm working on the side.**

 **Trying to incorporate tanks and making them be the main focus was a task I knew from the beginning was going to be tough. In a chapter such as this? Doubly so, I didn't want the story to be a stomp. Hence the magic barriers and comms jamming, which has by the way actually been met with pretty good feedback.**

 ***update*-Had to doctor up the ending to this chapter, it felt rushed and was missing some character interaction to be honest. Also, the review system seems to be down, if you have any comments etc. Just PM me and I'll address them that way.**

 **Also to the guest Mrlzers (I hope I got your name right)-Don't be sorry, in fact I apologize to YOU and anyone else who has a good bond with their religion. I got so tied up in trying to make this gate seem like a powerful event that I tried to hit all the "wickets". I should have done my research more thoroughly. So thank you for the heads up, in fact I went back and took that portion out altogether.**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: Reap What You Sow  
**

" _To our Marines fell the most difficult and dangerous portion of the defense by the reason of our proximity to the great city wall and the great city gate...The Marines acquitted themselves quite nobly"  
_

U.S. Foreign Minister Edwin H. Conger, Peking, Boxer Rebellion, 1900

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 0200 HOURS, SOUTHERN APPROACH TO ITALICA**

The battlefield is an unpredictable place, in the blink of an eye, even the most well laid out plan can fall apart. It's moments like these that define a military, would its leaders panic and lose all sense of control? Or would they salvage the situation and take control? Thankfully such a question didn't need to be asked of the Marines of Horsemen platoon, especially not Aldritch.

Clear communication was the life blood of any successful operation, to cut that off could spell disaster and throw personnel into disarray. Fortunately for all parties involved at Italica, if there was one thing Marines always trained for, it was disaster. Alrditch already knew the bigger picture; he had two tanks at the eastern approach to Italica. One was stuck but still functional, and the other was mobile and more than capable of defending both itself and its wingman. Comms were being jammed and currently there was a wave of bandits crashing against the eastern wall.

To make matters worse Aldrtich's gunner had already begun seeing thermal shapes moving down the southern approach. Italica was about to be encircled and overrun if the situation wasn't salvaged. Looking through his own sights, Aldritch keyed his comm helmet to the rear.

"Walker talk to me, what do we got?"

Not removing his face from his sights. Corporal Michael Walker continued to shift zoom magnifications as he traversed from left to right.

"I'm seeing a lot of foot mobiles moving down the southern avenue of approach and..." Suddenly the turret jerked hard as something attracted its attention.

"Oh fuck...boss I think they're setting up artillery...looks like catapults!"

Aldritch looked through his sights as five large thermal signatures began to be wheeled in atop a distant hill. Aldritch began to feel his heart rate skyrocket. Nonexplosive or not, artillery was still artillery. A large boulder could just as easily bend a gun tube or give the crew a major concussion. Now their fate was sealed, Aldritch's section could not break off or even spare one tank to help accompany the M88 in recovering the stuck tank.

In truth, he also didn't trust Itami's team to be able to hold the wall on their own, guns or not everyone has their limits. They'd need the tanks there to be the rock the enemy wave would break against. Suddenly Aldritch remembered something, Hitman could be the key to their salvation.

In truth, he wasn't sure who Hitman was or what they were even packing, but with a call sign like Hitman, they had to be the real deal. The only problem was, he had no idea where they were.

He wouldn't have to look for long. Hitman found him.

In moments a series of dull knocks came from the top of his hatch, Aldritch had almost tensed up before his driver, Lance Corporal Tanner Reeve's voice came over the internal net.

"Sir? There's some guys standing around the front slope..."

Aldritch's eyes suddenly went wide at this statement as he began to look through his periscopes. Sure enough, he could just barely make out a few robed figures standing around the tank. Clenching his fists, he keyed his comm helmet to the rear to berate his crew.

"What the fuck Reeves! Jesus, has anyone been keeping eyes on our flanks?!"

Before Aldritch could continue, Reeves's voice came back over the internal net, still as calm as ever.

"Sir, they have firearms...I'm pretty sure they're not the enemy."

Meanwhile, Walker proceeded to piggyback off what Reeves had said, his voice did little to hide his irritation. Meanwhile, the boot stomps continued atop Aldritch's hatch.

"Sir, they also made their way past Three, I'm pretty sure if they were hostile they'd already be dead."

Looking over to his left, Aldritch could see Moores sitting there in his loader's seat. With a look of confusion on his face, Moores merely shrugged. He of all people had absolutely no way of knowing what was going on outside the tank, after all, he was ordered to button up.

Realizing how much of an asshole he had just made himself out to be, Aldritch rubbed his face in frustration. After several moments, the boot stomps continued, this time, they had a real sense of urgency to them. Shaking his head, Aldritch unlocked his hatch and raised it open, locking it to the rear. The sight that awaited him atop his turret was one he hadn't been expecting.

In the blue glow of the turret's dome lights, a robed figured stood atop the turret looking down at Aldritch. Behind a balaclava, Aldritch could just barely make out the figure's dark skin. Had it not been for the obvious helmet, slung carbine, and semi-exposed MARPAT FROG suit, Aldritch might have mistaken the figure for a wraith. Seeing the look of confusion on Aldritch's face, the figure shook his head and removed the lower portion of its balaclava as it began to yelll over the sound of the engine.

"You Lieutenant Aldritch?!"

Aldritch merely nodded as the figure continued. "Well that's fucking terrific, your other tank's tank commander told us this was your hog! Lieutenant Kristian Emerson, MARSOC, Bravo Company Team Two, callsign Hitman! I'd love to exchange pleasantries some more, but right now we're knee-deep in bullshit if you haven't been aware!"

Aldritch partially climbed out of his hatch to converse with Emerson, having a team of Raiders on his side would be the salvation he'd need to fix this clusterfuck.

"I'm aware Emerson! I don't know if you're aware, but right now we have another wave coming up the southern road! I'd love to break my section off and get the Mike eighty-eight over to my other section, but between you and I? I don't think Itami's team is gonna be up to snuff to hold this wall down on their own!"

As if to confirm Aldritch's statement, a bright flash followed by an earth-shaking roar got the attention of both the officers. _Southern Belle_ had just sent a round down the road at the incoming bandit horde. A loud thump followed by the distant screams of men followed, a long burst of machine gun fire followed as the tank's turret began to aggressively traverse left and right.

The time to act was now, turning to face Aldritch Emerson lifted his NVGs up and yelled over the roar of the other tank's onslaught.

"You pulled us out of the fire, let us do the same for you! My team can escort your eighty-eight over to the tanks, once it's there it better work fast. Call it a hunch, but I'm pretty sure the Eastern wall is already being overrun! If we don't get your two tanks inside this whole damn place is going to turn into a fucking bloodbath! I have a hunch as to what's jamming our comms too, once we unfuck the comm problem we'll send the call up to Alnus."

Aldritch watched as Southern Belle's .50 cal and coax let out a chorus of lead filled death as they began to pour everything they had down the road, tracer rounds darted across the darkness and with them the screams of men being cut down followed.

"Okay! The eighty-eight is inside the eastern gate's courtyard, its vehicle commander is Sergeant Muldoon! You let him know I sent you and what your plan is!"

Emerson merely nodded and went to disembark, before he made it down the turret, Aldritch called out to him one final time.

"Emerson! Good hunting, you make those bastards hurt, got it!?"

Emerson turned around and smiled before he lifted his balaclava up and lowered his NVGs down over his eyes."Just save some for us!"With that, Emerson rejoined his team and darted like shadows towards the eastern gate.

Adlrtich waited for the operators to be at a safe distance before he retreated back into the armored safety of his turret, closing his hatch and locking it firmly he addressed his crew.

"Alright boys, MARSOC's here to clean this mess up. Once they're done, they're gonna call in some extra hurt. In the meantime, we can't let _Southern Belle_ have all the fun now can we?"

Evil chuckles echoed from the mouths of every crew member inside the tank, they lived for chaos. Death was the business that tankers dealt in, and right now business was looking very good. Giving Walker a pat on the back, Aldritch looked through his sights and gave a thumbs up to Moores.

"Now then...lets see what we can't do about that artillery eh? Moores give me a HEAT."

Aldritch heard the sounds of the hydraulically powered ammo door open and the breach being dropped as Moores quickly loaded a round. Meanwhile, Walker began to laze the catapults and feed ranges to the tank's fire control systems.

"Got em at 1,000 meters boss."

The lieutenant smirked as he felt the tank traverse to line one up in its sights, "Good...Fire!"

"On the way!"

Aldritch watched with satisfaction as one of the catapults disappeared in a dust cloud, pieces of its wooden framework flying every which way. Suddenly another catapult suffered the same fate, no doubt _Southern Belle_ 's doing.

Alpha Section was in the fight now.

* * *

Itami watched atop the southern wall as the two tanks below began to send death towards unseen targets in the distance. Night turned into day as their main gun muzzles lit up from their large caliber rounds. Meanwhile, tracer rounds zipped and darted through the darkness, where those went only the screams of the dead and the dying could be heard.

The members of RCT3 were no strangers to working with tanks, having done so with the crew of _Here We Go Again_. But to hear the sounds of multiple tanks constantly unleashing their fury, to say it was unnerving was an understatement. Itami watched as his men looked at the battle unfold with mouths agape, they knew that somewhere beyond the range of their NVGs, large groups of men were dying. There was nothing the enemy could do, nowhere to hide, and no one to help them.

Itami rubbed his face in frustration, how had it come to this? He had an entire platoon of tanks seemingly doing whatever they wanted, and he had absolutely no way of communicating with them. Meanwhile, the Eastern wall was probably compromised and no one had even bothered to come to him or his men for help. He had no control of the situation, and for the first time, Itami felt utterly helpless.

To make matters worse, Rory was going absolutely ballistic. She wouldn't respond to anyone and to the horror of everyone present, she had actually begun to pleasure sat there screaming and drooling, occasionally moaning the names of every one of the Marine tankers. As much as Itami wanted to let her loose, he couldn't. There was simply no telling just how unhinged she would become once she joined the fight.

Itami's men were being mentally stretched to their limits, he could see it in their eyes. Meanwhile, the light of distant fires began to grow at the Eastern Wall, casting a hellish orange glow in the night sky. Itami felt his mind begin to race, he was starting to lose it. Suddenly a firm hand grasped his shoulder, it was Kuwahara.

"Sir? Itami? We should split some of our team off to aid in the defense of the Eastern Gate. The two tanks and some of our men should be sufficient enough to hold this area."

Itami slowly turned around and regarded the older soldier with fatigue strained eyes. "We can't, our orders were to hold this wall. Nobody has come to us, so we have to assume they have the situation under control."

Kuwahara sighed as he released his grip. "Sir, that princess is just a young girl. She knows nothing of war or the tactics needed to effectively wage one. There are two tanks possibly being overrun as well. You heard their last transmissions, they need help."

Itami looked back at the two tanks as they continued their onslaught below. "They know what they're doing Sergeant Major, we have to assume Aldritch has some sort of plan already set in motion. For now all we can do is-"

Suddenly Kurokawa interrupted Itami mid-sentence, she had just overheard her superiors conversation and had left tending to Rory to join them. Her irritation was present in her every word. "What if they don't sir!? They're only men! Tankers or not they're not perfect, nobody is!"

Itami faced her, irritation and fatigue in his eyes. "I understand that Sergeant! They're going to be fine! You've heard the stories, you know their reputation! They thrive in this! But I will not help a ship sink any further than it needs to!"

Kuwahara stood in between the two, his rifle slung as he looked at either. "That's enough! Both of you! These are trying times for all of us, but the last thing we need to do is start fighting!"

Itami turned around and looked at the faces of each and every one of his team members from Shino's battle ready face to Kurata's calm demeanor, they were all looking up to him. They trusted him, and he wouldn't let them down.

"You're right Sergeant Major, men, I apologize for my lapse in focus. I need your help though, do you have any ideas?"

Looking at Itami with a smile, Kuwahara pat his shoulder firmly. "Now that's the Itami I know, and yes I do have an idea. If we could send a small team to accompany their eighty-eight, perhaps that would be enough to keep everyone well reinforced. It may not be a tank, but it has enough armor to not be in any danger. We can use the LAV, that should be enough to keep our own guys safe.

Itami nodded, for now, that was their best option. Before he could say anything else, a voice came from below the wall. "Hey! Can someone open this goddamn door?! We're on a bit of a tight schedule and we have a date with disaster!"

All the members of RCT3 including Lelei and Tuka looked down below, what they saw had not only surprised them but gave them hope too. A small team of cloaked Marines stood there, everything about their appearance screamed Special Forces.

Itami looked at the lead Marine as he waved his hands in the air. "Hello?! Domo Arigatou Mr. Roboto?! Open the fucking door! We need to get the eighty-eight started!"

Itami shook the confusion from his head and promptly made his way down to the gate with Kuwahara via a small series of stone stairs. Lifting the heavy iron bar, they pushed on the large door with all their might. Once it was finally open, a series of armed and hooded figures darted inside and towards the large recovery vehicle in the courtyard. Meanwhile, the one that had addressed Itami made his way over to him and Kuwahara.

Had Itami not seen the helmet, concealed gear, and dark skin, he would've mistaken the man for a local.

"Jesus, took you long enough, Lieutenant Kristian Emerson, MARSOC Team Two, Callsign Hitman. We were sent here by Aldritch to accompany the eighty-eight, we're gonna help get that other tank unstuck."

Itami did a double take at Kuwahara and then back at Emerson. It was like as if fate itself had dropped these Marines before them, fate or not Itami was thankful.

"Well that's a coincidence, we were about to do the same. Is there anything we can do to assist you?"

Emerson looked over at the eighty-eight, Masterson had made his way aboard and was conversing with Muldoon. In moments, the mechanic yelled at his crew and the eighty-eight's diesel engine roared to life. Meanwhile, the rest of team two began to clamber aboard and take up positions across its back deck. Returning his gaze back to Itami he nodded.

"Yeah, lend us use your gun truck. This operation calls for speed and precision. No offense, but we have that in spades your boys would just get in the way. Once we get those tanks unstuck, we're gonna support them at the eastern gate."

Itami merely nodded, he had never heard of MARSOC before, but he had a feeling they were as good as they were cocky. "Right then, it's yours, but you are aware that comms are still down right?"

Emerson was just about to give his theory as to the cause of that when Lelei beat him to the punch. Atop the wall, she called down to Itami. "Itami, I'm sensing a magical presence accompanying the bandits. If you can subdue that presence, your "comms" will probably work again."

The MARSOC offier looked up at Lelei, then back at Itami. "Well there you have it, we'll neutralize it and..."

Itami promptly cut him off. "Emerson, perhaps it would be best if we try to subdue it? We could get valuable information out of it...whatever it is."

Emerson sighed and rubbed his forehead. Captures were always a pain in the ass, but Itami had a point. Taking a quick drag from his E-cig, he went back to looking at the Japanese officer.

"Fine, but if it gives us a problem? We're destroying it, picking up what I'm putting down?"

Itami nodded and looked over at Kuwahara. "Let the men know what's going on, I'll be back up in a few minutes." The sergeant major merely nodded and made his way back up to the wall. Meanwhile, Emerson lowered his NVGs and pulled his balaclava back up, his voice sounding muffled and sinister against the fabric.

"Itami, when the comms go back up, make whatever calls you need to make. We're gonna need all the firepower we can get."

Before Itami could respond, he felt a presence drop in from above. Looking up he saw a small figure drop down, a massive halberd in its grasp, It was Rory. Dropping down between the two men, she looked at Emerson with a stern face.

"If you're going to join the chariots, Take me with you...now."

Emerson had already jumped back and raised his carbine. "Who the fuck are you?!"

Rory giggled and hefted her halberd over her shoulder. "I am Rory Mercury, apostle of Emroy."

Itami couldn't see it in the darkness, but Emerson had just thumbed the safety off his carbine. Before the situation could further deteriorate, Itami stepped between the two.

"Emerson, it's okay she's with us! She's not hostile!"

Emerson knew damn well who she was, he just had to confirm it with his own eyes and ears. He slightly lowered his carbine, he had only been moments away from unloading on her. "Well, next time keep your _**pet**_ on a leash."

Rory was just about to discipline Emerson for his insult when Itami grabbed her by the shoulder and shook his head. The apostle giggled and slightly relaxed, meanwhile, Emerson slightly lowered his carbine further.

"Well, Rory, fortunately for you, we've heard about some of your...escapades. If you're as good as the rumors say you are, sure you can come with us."

Rory giggled and licked her lips, "Then let us not keep my riders waiting."

Emerson shot a glare at Itami and began to make his way over towards the rest of his team and the eighty-eight, Rory following him closely. Itami watched as Rory clambered aboard the eighty-eight and stood triumphantly behind its center mounted .50 cal. Meanwhile, Emerson's team hopped off the eighty-eight and piled into the LAV.

In moments, the two vehicles gunned it out the gate and into the maelstrom of battle beyond.

* * *

"That's right, run you little chicken shits!"

Elton watched through his sights as Kincaid sent another HEAT round at a group of bandits trying to flee from the tank's tracks. In an effort to conserve ammo, every so often Elton would have the tank drive forward and crush over any bandits that failed to run. He could almost hear their screams as they disappeared under the chassis or were partially crushed and left to slowly die on the battlefield.

At one point in an act of sadistic shock and awe, Kincaid had bisected a bandit's legs with the coax. Left to crawl, Elton had commanded Benitez to have the tank slowly creep up on him as he tried to drag himself away. His was a slow and terrifying death. As wrong as it was, it had sent a very clear message to the rest of the hordes, if they even so much as dared come any closer to the tanks, they too would suffer the same fate.

Kincaid gritted his teeth as he brought the turret hard left to engage another advancing horde, its servos whining as they were pushed to their limit. His job had been the most stressful. Between occasionally having to gun down large groups of boarders trying to make their way to _Cry Sum Moar_ and trying to harass the rest of the horde advancing on Italica.

He was beginning to lose his patience.

In fact, everyone in the crew was losing their patience, for all the fury and firepower they unleashed on the hordes the bandits just wouldn't stop. They fought like possessed animals, they were determined in taking Italica.

Completing its ammo conserving lap, _Here We Go Again_ returned to its original position beside _Cry Sum Moar_ , meanwhile, Kincaid returned to engaging targets. Wilkes slammed his fist on the ammo door in frustration, all he could do was continue to make sure Kincaid had the ammo he needed to continue engaging. A while ago he had attempted to use his own 240 to take the burden off Kincaid and Elton. That was a short-lived moment as not even minutes after he had opened his hatch, a flurry of arrows came at him. So by group decision, the crew decided to keep the hatches buttoned up.

Elton vowed that as soon as the situation had developed for the better, he would personally make sure that each and every bandit suffered a gruesome death. Looking through his .50 cal's sights, he let another salvo off at a few bandits that had tried to sneak up on _Cry Sum Moar_. Slamming his fist on his hatch, he voiced his irritation.

"Christ why don't they give up?! And where the fuck is everyone else?"

Not looking away from his sights, Kincaid continued to engage bandits, yelling through his headset all the while.

"Fuck man I don't know! Maybe they're busy too?!"

Not even seconds after Kincaid had said that he did a double take through his sights. A group of bandits had been torn in half by large caliber rounds, Elton hadn't fired and _Cry Sum Moar_ was too busy engaging bandits off to its right. Suddenly he found the answer he was looking for.

The white thermal image of a Komatsu LAV quickly slid into his sights, its gunner engaging bandits every which way. Just as soon as it had appeared, the LAV promptly went across the road and barreled into a group of bandits, bodies flying every which way. Wherever it was going, it seemed like as if something had caught its attention.

"Yo! You see that shit? I think Itami's boys just entered the fight!"

Elton had been looking through his rear periscopes with a smile on his face. "They're not the only ones, the fucking eighty-eight is here!"

Kincaid traversed the turret hard right, sure enough, he could see the large recovery vehicle gunning its way over towards _Cry Sum Moar._ As its .50cal let loose salvos at any nearby bandits, it began to make its way over towards the front of the stuck tank. Kincaid could see the hatches on the tank begin to open up as Parker and his crew hopped out to prep the tank for recovery options.

Now came the job of simply defending the two vehicles. Before Elton could give the order for Benitez to move the tank closer towards the two, a series of knocks rang out atop his hatch. Elton merely tapped Kincaid on the back and did a spinning motion with his finger. "We got boarders, give em some whirlybirds."

Kincaid merely nodded and gave the turret max power as he traversed the turret hard left, anyone who was on top of the turret would be promptly thrown off by the sheer speed and momentum of the turret's traversal. After a few seconds, Kincaid let go of his controls causing the turret to jerk to a stop violently.

Satisfied, Elton went back to attempting to give the order to move when Kincaid suddenly jumped back in his seat. Elton's eyes went wide as he addressed the problem.

"Bro, What's wrong?!"

Kincaid merely pointed at his sights and looked back at Elton with a look of confusion. "It's...Rory."

Meanwhile, Wilkes and Benitez groaned over the internal net, they were anything but thrilled.

Elton promptly looked through his sights and sure enough, he could see her face looking back at him, or rather a giant green thermal blob. Sighing and shaking his head he opened his hatch and stuck his head out into the night's air. Before he could even say anything Rory sprung atop the turret and gave him a tight hug.

"Elton! I've come to fight by your side! Let us claim this battlefield in Emroy's name and show these fools the folly of their transgressions!"

Elton struggled for a moment before breaking her grip, a look of visible disappointment on his face. "I don't have time for this bullshit! Look if you're gonna stay, make yourself useful and don't get in the way!"

Rory smiled and gave a mock salute. "But of course, good sir knight!"

Elton merely shook his head and began to direct Benitez to drive over towards the recovery operation, meanwhile, Rory took her place behind his cupola, her halberd raised high and triumphant.

"Onward Riders of Emroy! To battle!"

 **XXXXXXX**

Doc opened his passenger door's window as he let off a burst of fire at some bandits that had been missed by Emerson's driving.

"Jay-Kay, This is a bad idea!"

"Doc, please spare me your belly aching! Unless you have the thing's goddamn cell phone number, this is the only way we're gonna find it!"

Over the roar of the engine and sounds of the .50 cal going off, Emerson yelled as he drove the truck into another group of bandits. The vehicle jerked as men were sent over the hood and sucked under its heavy tires. Meanwhile, Nutt casually chucked grenades out the back of the vehicle's open doors, Loke and Doc just did their best to hold on and fire at what targets they could.

"Cam, see any magicians yet!?"

Masteron chuckled as he sent another burst of heavy rounds into a group of bandits that were attempting to find cover in some bushes before he responded.

"Naw nothing yet! But god damn is this fun!"

The vehicle strained as its shock absorbers took another impact from bandits getting sucked under the tires as it swerved every which way. Meanwhile, arrows bounced harmlessly off the vehicle's heavy duty armor and bullet proof windshields.

Hitman was effectively on a scavenger hunt, a very big angry scavenger hunt. They had no idea what the "magician" looked like, or even if it was a magician at all. For now all they could do was cause chaos as the tanks worked on making their way back to the southern gate.

Finally, something must have caught Masterson's eyes as he had promptly stopped firing. "Bingo! What do we have here!? Two o clock, some sort of uh...bird girl! She's got her hands in the air!"

Emerson promptly turned the wheel hard right and the vehicle gunned its way over in the general direction Masteron had directed earlier. After some more bandit collisions, the vehicle's high beams finally shone their light on a small girl. With her short green hair, bird-like legs, and elaborate looking attire, she was definitely the odd looking one out of the bunch.

As the vehicle skidded to a hard stop, she covered her eyes with her hands. Not wasting any time, Emerson looked back at Loke and Nutt.

"Loke, Nutt! Detain her!"

In seconds, the pair had jumped out of the back of the vehicle, ran ahead, and tackled the girl. Meanwhile, Masterson provided covering fire with the .50 as the two raiders bound and gagged the girl. Nutt promptly put the girl into a fireman's carry and brought her back alongside Loke as they piled into the back of the vehicle.

As the two shut the heavy doors behind them, Nutt yelled as he got a better look at her. "Jesus, she's just a child!"

Emerson floored the pedal to the deck and put the vehicle into a U-turn as they made their way back to the tanks. Turning a few nobs and grabbing a handheld from the center console, Emerson took a deep breath.

"Alright now to test a theory! Any station this net, any station this net, this is Hitman Actual! Radio check, over!"

For a few moments silence reigned supreme on the net, Doc looked over at Emerson with a sullen face. Suddenly the net came alive with chatter.

"Holy shit! They actually did it! Good shit Hitman!"

"Aww, I was just getting used the peace and quiet!"

Emerson slammed his fist on the dashboard in triumph, meanwhile, the rest of the team hooped and hollered. Once again MARSOC operators had achieved the impossible and emerged against all odds. Not skipping a beat, Emerson changed the frequency and yelled into the handset.

"Alnus Main, Alnus Main, this is Hitman Actual! Be advised we are currently engaged at Italica! Massive enemy force numbering in the thousands! We need reinforcements _**now**_!"

For a few moments, all was quiet until a man's voice came over the net, it was Kane.

By some stroke of luck, Kane had been in the operation's room the whole time. Hours of radio silence from Italica had already put most of the base's QRF teams on high alert.

"Solid copy on all Hitman, this is Overlord. Hang tight son, help is on the way. Just give us an hour tops."

Emerson held back tears of joy as he radioed back, "That's an affirm Overlord! We'll try to save some for you, Hitman out!"

Returning the radio back to its cradle, Emerson yelled back at his team as he drove the truck through another group of bandits.

"Hear that boys?! Help is on the way!"

A series of chuckles and thumbs up followed, meanwhile, Nutt lowered his face to the girl's.

"Your bandit buddies are so fucked..."

The girl merely lay there motionless as tears streamed down her fear filled eyes.

* * *

Finally after what had felt like an eternity, Elton watched as _Cry Sum Moar_ was finally pulled out of the ditch it had gotten stuck in. With a whine of satisfaction, its turbine engine went full throttle as it crested up the small hill the two tanks had been near. Elton listened in as Parker's voice came over the net.

"Shit thanks eighty-eight, you're a goddamn life safer."

In moments Muldoon's voice came over the net, chuckling all the while.

"Yeah, yeah we get it. We're gonna go ahead and head back to Alpha section, you boys don't get anymore tanks stuck know ya hear?"

With that, the recovery vehicle lumbered its way back towards the battle going down at the southern entrance.

Parker and Elton laughed as their tanks turned to face Italica's southern entrance, meanwhile, Hitman's newly acquired LAV drove up besides them.

"You can thank us later, now then I know how you tankers roll! How's about we give the eastern gate a friendly welcome?"

Although the tankers had been expecting Itami's men to be crewing the LAV, their moods were raised considerably upon learning that Hitman had commandeered the vehicle. The crews on both tanks laughed mischievously, they knew what the plan was. Elton keyed out over the net as he addressed the other two vehicles.

"Yo Three, ready for some gangster shit?"

"Well...I'm down for some cowboy shit, but sure thing. On your lead Four."

With that the three vehicles gunned it towards the Italica's southern gate, meanwhile, Rory laughed maniacally all the while atop her iron perch. The thrill of the coming battle had turned her on and made her blood rush.

* * *

From behind a makeshift barricade, Pina watched in horror as the bandits began to flood the courtyard, moments earlier she had watched as Norma was cut down atop the wall and cast down on the other side. The militia accompanying him had put up a valiant effort, but against the bandits onslaught, their efforts were for naught. With no real threat to oppose them, the bandits had an easy go at breaking through the gate.

How had it came to this? Where were the iron chariots and the men in green? Had they abandoned them?

All was lost, Italica was doomed. There was nothing to stop the bandits at this point, Pina drew her sword as she glanced at Hamilton and Grey. They nodded in kind as they prepared themselves for battle.

Then a noise began to grow, faint at first it grew closer and closer. It sounded like the gales of a powerful storm, meanwhile, the bandits stopped in their tracks, their eyes grew wide with fear. They had known what the noise was, many of them had just barely made it past the ones who it originated from.

Then, chaos reigned.

In moments, one of the large iron chariots came crashing through the entrance, its head facing backward as men were crushed or tossed aside like dolls. As it made its way into the courtyard it took its place to left of the barricade, but it wasn't alone. Perched atop it, Rory Mercury laughed and giggled as she tossed her halberd at a group of bandits that had survived the initial charge.

Soon another iron chariot charged through and made its way to the right side of the barricade. Like its companion, it too began to traverse its large head towards the front as it began to slay bandits. Shortly after, one of the smaller iron wagons from before screeched to a halt and took up place between the two chariots.

From the moment they had entered, to the time they had begun firing, bandits were dropping like flies before a sharp wind. Meanwhile, Rory killed and dismembered bandits wholesale as her lithe form darted to and fro in the courtyard.

"My Riders of Emroy come for your souls! Run all you want, you'll find no salvation or mercy anywhere!"

Hamilton approached Pina and mirrored her superior's face as she watched the blood bath begin anew.

"Rory...commands the iron chariots?"

Pina watched as the two behemoths let loose with a chorus of sparks and crackles as their strange weapons began to send death at the bandits. Atop the walls, below the walls, piling through the gate, it didn't matter. They all died the same, but they would not relent.

Every so often they would let loose their mighty cannons, the earth shook and left the defenders tone deaf as they sent their fury through the gate's entrance.

"I-I think she does."

* * *

 **0400 HOURS, ALNUS AIRFIELD, CAMP ALNUS**

Van Hauser and the rest of his company ran across the tarmac as they made their way to the waiting choppers. The dull orange glow of the rising sun illuminating their outlines, meanwhile JSDF infantry teams scrambled to their choppers as well.

The lieutenant looked up and saw a pair of Harriers screech overhead as they made their way to the distant battle. He grit his teeth, this was going to be a big fight.

Just fifty minutes prior, he had been spending time with Felicia when he got the call on his radio. He had to get his platoon prepped and ready for dust off ASAP. Felicia had been anything but thrilled, her cat ears drooping in sadness at the news. He merely ran a hand through her hair, promising he'd be back in no time, and with that he left her at the refugee zone.

He had no idea what the mission was, in fact very few did. All they knew was that whatever it was it was going to be big, big enough to warrant a whole flight's worth of attack and transport choppers. Van Hauser led his platoon into the waiting mouth of one of the CH-53's. As he stood at the open ramp, he directed them in.

"Go! Go! Go! Let's move it people!"

Before he followed them inside he noticed two Huey Venom transport helicopters take off, but it wasn't the helicopters themselves that caught his eyes. It was what was on them. On each helicopter's tail was a name, one was called Beethoven, the other Wagner. Though their names were different, their load outs were very much the same.

Inside each of their troop bays were two large sets of speakers on either side, Van Hauser quickly deduced what they were the moment their speakers began to play.

Psyops Choppers.

* * *

 **Wagner and Beethoven's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 16: Johnny Cash "The Man Comes Around"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _"There's a man going around taking names, and he decides who to free and who to blame. Everybody won't be treated all the same, there'll be a golden ladder reaching down. When the man comes around."_

As Van Hauser took up his seat next to one of the privates, he heard Boyd's voice yell out over the chopper's rotors.

"Aww hell yeah! That's some good listening there! We're off to kill with the man himself! Johnny mother fuckin Cash!"

Van Hauser merely shook his head as he smiled. "Fucking southern boy."

Suddenly the chopper began to lift off the ground, the Marines began to ready up. Weapons were racked, gear checked, comms adjusted, meanwhile the door gunners took up their positions behind their weapon mounts.

As the chopper began to bank left and fly over the base, Van Hauser looked out back behind the chopper.

As far as the eye could see, choppers of various types flew in formation, meanwhile both Marine and Japanese Cobra attack helicopters stayed on the outsides protecting the transport choppers. It was quite a sight, like vengeful eagles riding through the sky they would come and strike down those who incurred their wrath.

Suddenly Van Hauser's company, commander Major Joyce, came over the net. "Alright Marines listen up, we're about to head into the shit! At approximately twenty-four hundred hours, some of our boys over at Italica came under attack by a large enemy force numbering in the thousands. Italica is a strategic location gentlemen, if we control this area, we'll control one of the largest trading hubs in the region. This is a high stakes operation gentlemen, once we touch down I want aggressive action by the numbers. Check your targets and for god's sake don't get swarmed. Rah?"

A series of yells and war cries rang out in the chopper's troop bay as the Marines got amped for the fight ahead.

"Good hunting."

Van Hauser watched the special region countryside pass by as he looked out the back ramp, pulling up his skull faced balaclava, he got himself psyched for the battle ahead.

* * *

To the bandit hordes, the battle was hardly in their favor from the moment they had begun their attack. From specters in the forests darting through the trees and hitting them unseen to the large iron chariots thought only to be a myth destroying entire legions. They were pressed on all sides, they had almost made their way inside the city too, only to be thwarted by the chariots and Rory Mercury of all people.

This was not war, not as they knew it. War was about getting in close and destroying the enemy, to see the look of defeat on their face as you ran them through and took what was yours.

These _**monsters**_ were disgraceful to that very way of life, a mockery to their god Emroy and everything honor stood for. They hid behind metal shells and threw fire and brimstone at them outside of their range. Now with the bandits' siren gone, there was nothing that could stop the iron beasts.

As the sun began to rise over the battlefield, they began to see what their actions had brought upon themselves. Fields of the dead and dying littered the ground, vultures had begun to fly overhead and congregate over the bountiful feast below. Meanwhile, the sounds of rage and fury could be heard all around Italica, to them their chance for an orgy of bloodshed had turned into a nightmare.

A nightmare that was from over, as the sun rose higher a sound could be heard. It was faint, but it grew louder and louder until it turned into an unbearable shriek. Sky banshees had come for them, but not the kind from the legends. No, these banshees were very tangible and very deadly. What lucky few got a look at them saw giant angular gray dagger-like shapes dart to and fro in the sky.

Every pass the banshees made spelled death for any in their path. Large fireballs sent chunks of earth and screaming men into the air at the banshees every pass, those had been the lucky ones. The unlucky ones were chewed up by invisible forces that carved paths through the dirt towards them, a large roar in the sky that preceded their arrival. There was nothing the bandits could do to fight back, only run or attempt to hide.

Then just as quickly as they had come, the banshees left. Their screams fading away into the distance as they had claimed enough souls. For those men who had survived, they felt as though they were lucky. They very quickly realized just how wrong they were.

From out of the sun, new horrors began to appear. These ones were noisy and more squat like, some were massive, some were small, but all of them seemed to carry the same men that crewed the iron chariots. Strange blades atop them whooped and made thumping noises as they flew around.

As they grew closer, a song began to play, a song unlike any they had ever heard before. It terrified the hordes, for soon they had understood what it was.

It was their funeral dirge.

* * *

 **Beethoven and Wagner's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 17: Dead Kennedy's "Holiday in Cambodia" (Original studio version)**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

As soon as the dirge started, so did the killing. These new winged chariots began to rain death just as terrible as the banshees had, and worse, they were almost _**better**_ at it.

" _So you been to school_  
 _For a year or two_  
 _And you know you've seen it all_  
 _In daddy's car_  
 _Thinkin' you'll go far_  
 _Back east your type don't crawl!_ "

All cohesion had been lost at that point, some of the men were hardened veterans, conquerors of long battles past. They too had dropped their weapons and tried to run, all their efforts were futile. At one point a group of cavalry had tried to flee the battle over a hill, one of the smaller chariots promptly broke off and chased after them with a relentless fury, its strange magic blowing them away wholesale.

The bandits had came there to plunder and sow terror.

Instead, terror had found them.

" _It's a holiday in Cambodia_  
 _It's tough, kid, but it's life_  
 _It's a holiday in Cambodia_  
 _Don't forget to pack a wife!_ "

* * *

To the tankers and any other Marines, the music had had quite the opposite effect. It whipped them into a battle frenzy making them fight with renewed vigor. At one point Alpha section had actually pushed up from their position and with the help of a few Cobra's had pushed an entire horde back into a waiting treeline filled with weapon emplacements courtesy of a few inserted infantry teams.

Hueys of both Japanese and American make conducted circling runs, their door guns corralling the bandits and denying their escape. Meanwhile, the Cobras continued to hunt down any targets of opportunity.

It was a turkey shoot, a large glorified turkey shoot.

Meanwhile, Marine and JSDF infantry fast-roped from their transport choppers onto Italica's walls. Some set up heavy weapons along the wall and continued to repel the hordes from elevated positions. Others were dropped into the heart of the city and began to clear every alley and every street for any enemy that had somehow leaked through.

For the tankers of Bravo section, however, their battle had been brutal from start to finish. Between Rory's mad laughter as she hacked men to pieces and the arrival of RCT3, it had been close up close and personal.

At one point _Here We Go Again_ had finally expended all its ammunition, leaving it one last option. With mighty yells, a whole tank crew opened their hatches and began to fight from atop their tank. With their personal weapons, they defended their home and themselves like mad men.

For Benitez, it had been an exhilarating new experience. For the rest of the crew, it had been a painful flashback to old battles; Benitez, Kincaid, Elton, and Wilkes fought shoulder to shoulder atop the turret as they fended bandits off their tank. When they ran out of ammunition for their personal weapons, they switched to bayonets and anything they could get their hands on.

This had only enticed Rory as she promptly boarded the tank and fought by their side, nothing but impressed at how they could fight without their weapons just as well as they could with them.

Meanwhile, Hitman worked with the same cold precision they were known for, no shot was wasted as they put rounds into targets.

The killing went on for hours until finally the last bandit had been killed or otherwise incapacitated. Against a fully risen sun, the defenders of Italica stood triumphantly, meanwhile, the helicopters continued to make their passes ensuring everything was clear.

The only message anyone had received to stand down was simple, it came across all frequencies loud enough for everyone to hear.

"All enemies neutralize, stand down and stand by for further instructions."

* * *

 **0600 HOURS, ITALICA'S EASTERN WALL**

As Pina made her way to the top of the Eastern wall, she began to hear a song coming from two of the sky chariots.

* * *

 **Wagner and Beethoven's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 18: Animals as Leaders "New Year"  
**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

The two chariots banked and danced through the air as they continued to fly around Italica. For all their brutality they had displayed, there was sort of elegance to them. At one point one of them had noticed her and had actually flown low enough for her to get a good look at it. Hovering across from her, she could just barely make out two men sitting in some sort of cabin, they waved at her for a while and promptly took back off into the sky to join the others.

Pina stood there petrified, this was the power that the "Allies" brought. The power to defy the gods themselves. Turning around she looked down at the two blood stained iron chariots and their crews as they sat there in the middle of the courtyard.

King Duran was right, there was nothing the Empire could do to stop them, and Pina had no intention of being destroyed.

So as the strange music continued from the heavens, Pina thought long and hard about what her next move would be, what the Empire's would be.

What the Allies' would be.

 **XXXXXXX**

Kincaid sat atop the tank's blood-stained front slope and listened to the music as he promptly lit two cigarettes at once, with a thousand-yard stare he sat there and took a deep drag as he let the music overtake him.

In a way it perfectly captured what they had just went through, something familiar for something not so familiar. The music was calming to say the least, it brought him back to the old days.

Back when all one had to do was crank something over the net and fight the enemy.

Meanwhile, the rest of the crew sat quietly around the top of the bloodstained turret, try as they might they couldn't find a spot that wasn't a complete mess. They sat there smoking their cigarettes and trying to catch their breathes. To fight in a tank for hours on end was a stressful matter, but to fight on top of it and face to face with the enemy was another matter altogether.

Elton pat the top of the GoPro he had mounted earlier, his voice devoid of any emotion. "Well...I got all of that on camera."

Meanwhile, Wilkes looked at his bloodstained FROG sleeves and sighed. "Yeah and I got all of that on me."

Benitez merely looked over and slowly nodded his head, in fact, the entire crew looked like a gang of barbarians. Once the bayonets had been fixed to their carbines it had been a desperate hand to hand battle. At one point Benitez had almost been dragged off the tank, only for a screaming Wilkes to come flying down the turret to his rescue. To the bandit that had endangered Benitez, his death had been anything but quick and clean.

As one, the entire crew slowly looked at each other and gave weak smiles. "For Raymond..."

With a shaking hand, Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out a Rockstar. Fumbling with the tab, he promptly opened it and took a deep drink. Looking around, he took in the scene that unfolded in front of him, Marine and JSDF infantry moved around with stretchers or tarps. They tried their best to cover up the bodies or tend to the wounded, but there was just so many of them.

At one point Kincaid had spotted an exhausted Kurokawa helping a few Corpsmen with some wounded. Her face lacked the usual spark of life it always had, but when she looked up and just so happened to see Kincaid staring at her. Her face lit up into one of joy and she waved at him. Kincaid merely smiled and waved back.

Meanwhile, Alpha section's tanks slowly rumbled into the courtyard. Troops and civilians alike gave them a wide berth as they took up whatever space they could find to park. Looking across the courtyard, Kincaid could see Itami and the rest of his team conversing with one of their superiors. They looked just as worn out as the tankers did.

Kincaid slowly sighed and looked down at his bloodstained trousers.

 _Why didn't they just give up?_

Suddenly his train of thought was interrupted by a familiar voice. "Well well, look who it is."

Kincaid looked up at the source of the voice and gave a weak smile, Emerson had made his way over towards the front of the tank. Setting his Kevlar down on the front slope and reaching under his cloak, he took out his E-cig and took a small drag.

"Didn't think we'd be dancing to this tune again, where's your butt buddy Wilkes at?"

Kincaid gave a weak laugh and took another drag from his pair of cigarettes, holding them side by side all the while.

"If by dancing you mean fighting and by tune you mean together, then yeah I gotta admit I'm a little surprised myself sir. As for my "butt buddy," he's up top probably trying to get some sleep. I'll be sure to let him know you paid us a visit."

Emerson chuckled and unslung his carbine, setting it down by his Kevlar. "Jesus man I told you before, call me Jay-Kay. Anyways what was it, two years ago? Operation Hammerdown?"

Kincaid chuckled as he took another sip from his beverage. "Yeah I remember that, I also remember you guys almost getting smoked by us. Friendly fire isn't fun you know, for both parties involved."

Emerson shook his head and took another drag. "Yeah? I remember you guys needing us to clear out some AT positions in a few buildings so you could advance too. Give some take some Kincaid, we wouldn't have been in the line of fire if we didn't have to be there in the first place."

"Touché."

The two laughed as the reminisced on the mission they had first worked together. Old and new stories were exchanged as they took their time to relax, just happy to be alive.

"So, what was jamming our comms?" Kincaid finished the last gulp of his drink and crushed the can against the front slope. Looking at Emerson with a raised eyebrow all the while.

Emerson let another puff of smoke out before he glanced over at the rest of his team huddled around the LAV. They formed a protecting ring around the prisoner, more for her safety than anything else.

"Well, to be honest, it was a girl, or rather some sort of bird girl. Some of the locals called her a Siren, so we're just going with that. As for how she was doing it? You got me, she's too damn terrified to talk."

Kincaid took his now dirty glasses off and stored them inside one of his cargo pockets, rubbing his tired eyes with his wrist.

 _Sirens, what's next? Cat girls?_

The pair's moment of relaxation was promptly cut short as a familiar giggle cut through the peace and quiet. In moments, Rory had somehow snuck up on the two and had firmly attached herself to Kincaid's arm rubbing her head against his shoulder all the while. Emerson had quickly put his hand near his sidearm, meanwhile, Kincaid merely sat there and shook his head. He was too tired to really care at this point.

Rory giggled and ran her blood stained hands up and down Kincaid's arm. "Jasper, that was an amazing fight was it not?"

Before Kincaid could say anything he watched as Emerson muttered something into his helmet's boom mic. In seconds, his entire team was looking over at the tank with suspicious eyes and readied weapons. Kincaid merely sighed and went to light another cigarette.

"No, it wasn't. That wasn't a fight, that was a massacre."

Before Rory could respond Emerson had taken a step forward and was eyeing her with suspicious eyes. "What kind of "god" commands entire legions of men to run into a fight they know they can't win?

Kincaid merely shook his head and looked at Emerson. "Relax, she's just a pain in the ass. I'm not in the mood for back and forth bullshit right now."

Meanwhile, the rest of the crew was now looking down at the scene unfolding in front of the tank. As much as they wanted to intervene, they really weren't in the mood either. Rory merely giggled and slowly turned her gaze to the MARSOC officer, a sly smile on her lips.

"Oh? Are you jealous? Would you rather me be attached to you? As for those "Men", there can be no greater service than to die in service to Emroy. They died as warriors."

At this point Emerson was really trying his best to keep his composure, Kincaid could see it and once again he tried to defuse the situation.

"Ugh just let it go, you remember how the Afghanis were. They had their way of life and their religion, these people obviously have theirs. Even if it means the concept of human life here is a fleeting one."

Emerson merely took another drag and pointed at Rory. "There's really something wrong with you people."

Rory merely smiled in response and clung tighter to Kincaid's arm. Closing her eyes, she responded with a smile. "Oh you'll understand someday, all of you will."

Throughout the conversation, Kincaid and Emerson had both noticed that villagers had been wandering a little too close to the tank. In fact, they had begun to notice it taking place at the other tanks too. At first, they had just brushed it off as just child-like curiosity, but soon more and more began to arrive.

They started to come closer to the tank, touching it and muttering all sorts of strange words. Soon an entire crowd began to form around not only Here We go Again, but the other tanks as well. The villagers began to drop to their knees in worship, extending their arms in praise. Some had even tried to rub the blood off the road wheels and side skirts, offering it up to the tankers.

"Praise be to the riders of Emroy..."

That had been the final straw for the allied forces present. Soon infantry teams began to try and dispel the crowds with the usual rough persuasion. When that didn't work they switched over to a tactic that did.

In moments, the sounds of weapons discharging into the air broke out and the crowds began to dissipate. One sided fight or not, the men were wired and didn't have time for this. That was all it took for the crowds to dissipate.

Clearly the "Riders of Emroy" and their fellows weren't in the mood for worship.

Meanwhile, Kincaid and Emerson had made their way to the top of the turret with a now laughing Rory. They both looked at her with looks of utter confusion.

"What the hell is wrong with you people?"

* * *

 **Now the first thing I know I'm gonna hear is, "Where's Ride of The Valkyries?"**

 **I'll be dead honest, out of all the Psyops songs to be likely played by Marines? That's probably the lowest on the list, nobody likes a "Motard" hah.**

 **I wanted the song to be something that would really just fuck with the minds of the bandits.  
**


	15. We're Tankers, Not Talkers

***UPDATE*-So there's a new forum for GATE now, give it a look. Might even see your's truly in there from time to time. So spread the word and stop on by!**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: We're Tankers, Not Talkers.  
**

" _No one can say that the Marines have ever failed to do their work in a handsome fashion."  
_

MajGen Johnson Hagood, USA

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, 1400 HOURS, KANE'S OFFICE, MARINE CP, CAMP ALNUS**

Kane furrowed his brow as he looked at various papers scattered across his desk. After a long night of having to coordinate a last minute air assault with Hazama, the last thing he needed was more paperwork. Hours of watching thermal cameras from his various air assets operating at Italica had left his eyes with a great deal of stress, having to essentially send out all his air assets last minute only added to that.

Fortunately, Hazama's boys had already long sent up their necessary calls making the coordinated assault proceed a lot smoother. In fact no sooner than Emerson had sent up the request for air support, a tired Hazama, and his top officers had made their way into the operations room in the Marine CP. In minutes infantry platoons were making their way to the airfield, aircraft were scrambled, and the assault was underway. After hours of fighting; with no less than 10,000 enemy KIA, multiple wounded, and zero allied casualties? The operation was a complete success.

The added benefit of Hazama allowing Italica to be a Marine owned and operated FOB was just the icing on the proverbial cake. Though Kane deduced this was more or less due to talks going on at the higher echelons, a Major Joyce was to oversee it's establishment and subsequent occupation.

The nature of the campaign in the Special Region was changing, it had gone from an incursion to a full-scale occupation. There were even talks about Alnus even becoming a potential duty station. Almost daily, supplies were constantly coming through the gate. All the necessary facilities and assets needed for a prolonged stay were coming through. Many were slated to go to Italica, but a great deal more were being set up to expand Alnus.

No matter how one looked at it, nothing about this campaign was normal. The allies hadn't just gone to another world, they had gone back in time too. The concept of human rights and science were nonexistent here. Instead, they were replaced with magic (if the rumors were to be believed), gods and the medieval concept of "might is right".

That been said, the allies had to do more than just fight, they had to educate and reach out too. Then, of course, there were the massive amounts of land and territory that had yet to be "tamed". The allies needed an answer to this problem, they needed more experience and numbers. The Japanese were capable, but this was still their first proverbial rodeo. If there was anyone who had gone down a road like this before, it was the U.S., and it would be the U.S. who would willingly send in more troops at the request of Japan.

There had been a lot of talks going on between the Joint Chiefs of Staff, every branch wanted a piece of the Special Region action. To be able to carve their own name in history as the victors, but in the end, the decision was unanimous. None could argue the symbolism involved between a Marine and Japanese-led campaign. Marines had staked their claim in history fighting the Japanese, and now they would stake their claim fighting beside them as allies.

So thus, the Third Marine Expeditionary Brigade was slated to fight there too. Under Lieutenant General Augustine's veteran guidance, the Marines would finally be able to branch out and carve a path for themselves in this new world. In keeping with their agreement with the Japanese and the American way, they would adhere to the Geneva Convention and continue to conduct themselves accordingly. Over the following weeks, they would begin to start trickling into Alnus.

All of this was fine by Kane, but the large stack of paperwork with unit names and incoming troops was hardly thrilling. To make matters worse, Hazama had stopped by his office an hour before.

For some terrible reason, someone thought it would be a good idea for Horsemen Four's crew to go to the Diet to and on behalf of the Marines.

Kane wasn't sure whether or not to be nervous or proud.

"God help em."

* * *

The fighting that had gone down at Italica was officially known as "The Siege of Italica", but in the hours preceding the battle it had earned a variety of unofficial names as well. "The Turkey Shoot of Italica" and "The Italica Massacre" to name a few. This had been in no small part to due to the ocean of enemy bodies laying around the fortress city and zero casualties any allied forces had received.

10,000 dead and zero friendly losses. To a casual onlooker, these numbers might have been assumed to be part some sort of homicidal invasion, but there was nothing homicidal to them. The enemy had shown up and had its ass decisively handed to it, even if it didn't feel right.

There had been a certain form of reason to what had gone down at Alnus, three uniformed military forces had fought there. It was a textbook counterattack to follow up against a non-textbook incursion into Tokyo.

At Italica, many of the troops, particularly the tankers, felt sick. Here they had fought the enemy and stopped them, yet there wasn't any satisfaction to it. It was more of a clean-up operation than anything else, there was no personal attachment to the kills, just dumping ammo at an almost endless tide.

In the beginning there was still some doubt, no one was entirely sure what lay beyond the gate or if allied firepower was actually absolute. Now that they had been operating in this new world for a while, the allied forces realized they had absolutely nothing to fear, at least not in the way of the enemy's military.

Which is what made Italica so bizarre, so unnatural. Word had to have traveled fast throughout the Special Region, it was hard to not notice tanks and aircraft operating, especially if one had never seen them before. Did these bandits just not hear the rumors? About the decimation of the army sent through the gate? About the battle of Alnus Hill? More importantly, where did they get the numbers?

There was also a form of selfless determination to their attacks, like as if someone had a gun to the back of their head.

In the end, it wouldn't be until much later on that the allies figured out the true motives of the attack.

* * *

 **1500 HOURS, EASTERN COURTYARD, ITALICA**

After a few hours of back breaking maintenance, rearm and refuel courtesy of two LVSRs, and picking bits and pieces of men out of the tracks, the tankers of Horsemen platoon finally got some much needed down time. Kincaid and his crew were certainly no exception as they stretched out atop their also took this time to grab some much-desired trophies from their recent fight.

Though it was against rules and regulations, they were far enough from prying eyes and sneaky enough to not have to worry about anyone being any the wiser. From cloaks to even a few swords, the tankers were like pack rats, such was their nature and that of any Marine in particular. They wanted to have tangible proof of their deployment, tributes to their valor and survival.

Meanwhile, various infantry teams continued to help with setting up defenses and assisting any civilians. Occasionally a civilian or two would try to wander over to the tanks only to get waved off by the infantry or be given fatigue induced death glares from the tankers. None of the allies were in the mood for anymore of the cultist jargon from earlier.

Leaning against the front of the turret and laying down on the front slope, Kincaid let out a long yawn and pulled his boonie cover down over his eyes. His job was done for now, hours of being cramped inside a hot turret had certainly worn him out. Hand to hand combat with bandits certainly hadn't helped either.

Finally closing his tired eyes, Kincaid mirrored the rest of the sprawled out crew atop the turret and tried to get some sleep.

Only to be disturbed shortly after.

"Geez Jasper and here I was thinking you were a hard worker."

Kincaid slowly tipped his boonie cover up, when his eyes were met with the image of a smiling Kurokawa at the edge of the front slope, he sighed and let it slowly droop back down. Mumbling from beneath his cover all the while.

"I am a hard worker, my job is to make things go boom and fix the tank. Everything's gone boom and the tank is fixed."

Kurokawa grumbled and gave Kincaid's right boot a sharp smack, clearly she wasn't letting him get any sleep. "Well, I still haven't given you a look over _**so wake up**_."

"But I already got looked over, I'm fine."

"A second opinion never hurts."

"Did you check the others?"

"Yes."

" _ **Bullshit.**_ "

"I don't like being called a liar Jasper, you and your crew are the last ones I have yet to look over."

"Plausible deniability, can't you let this one slide? I'm tired as hell."

"Everyone's tired and I'm sure you've downed plenty of energy drinks, now wake up."

Kincaid mumbled something incoherent and tried to wave her off with a lazy hand. That was the last mistake he made before she promptly grabbed both of his boots and dragged a now scared senseless Kincaid down to the edge of the front slope. Quickly sitting upright he looked at her with red and dark ring encircled eyes.

"Okay, okay! You win, Jesus Mari!"

"Good, glad you see things my way."

Kincaid could hear a series of chuckles emanating from the top of the turret, he didn't have to look twice to know Elton and the others were probably laughing at his blunder. Sighing, he slowly raised a middle finger at them and hopped off the front slope.

"Okay, let's get this over with."

Kurokawa merely smirked, she knew she had just hurt his pride. Taking off her helmet and unslinging her Type 64, she set them both down on the front slope and began to give him a quick look over, asking questions all the while.

"So how are you feeling?"

"Gah! Geez, you trying to bend my arm backward!? Well, everything's attached fine, just a few bruises that's all."

"Oh don't be such a baby, you're worse than Itami." Kurokawa let go of Kincaid's arm and raised an eyebrow as she looked at the various blood stains that covered his FROG suit.

"With all this blood on you? Could've fooled me, you look like you just pushed someone into a wood chipper. How about mentally? You guys certainly took the brunt of that attack."

Kincaid ran a hand through his matted hair, it had been a while since he had last had a haircut and it was starting to show in a full bushy head of it. "Wouldn't be the first time someone bit off more than they could chew fighting us, sometimes being persistent isn't always a good idea. You should ask the Taliban about that."

Seeing that he was alright physically, Kurokawa folded her arms. "Well next time don't go popping hatches for some last stand cowboy nonsense. You had plenty of support nearby."

Kincaid sighed and took a seat on the edge of the front slope, fishing into his cargo pocket he took out a half crushed pack of cigarettes and lit a crooked one. As he let out a long puff of smoke he regarded her with tired eyes.

"Geez, you're starting to sound like my dad before I went off to Afghan."

"Charmed, so tell me would your dad tell you smoking is bad for you as well?"

"Probably not, he does it too."

"What about your mom?"

"Probably."

"Then smoking is bad for you."

"So is this job."

"Real funny."

"I have my moments."

Seeing that she wasn't going to win this argument Kurokawa sighed and rolled her eyes. "You're a stubborn man Jasper, makes it hard for those looking out for you."

Kincaid chuckled and got a good stretch in, flicking his cigarette butt over the side of the tank. "And now you really do sound like my mom." Seeing that there was an open spot, Kurokawa climbed atop the front slope and sat next to Kincaid, her legs getting a much deserved break from all the back and forth she had been doing all morning.

"Well someone has to look out for you."

"I can take care of myself, besides I have the other guys too."

"A little extra doesn't hurt."

The pair sat there quietly for a moment before Kurokawa spoke up, "So does all of this still remind you of Afghanistan?"

By now Kincaid had gone back to laying down, his legs hanging off the front slope as his boonie cover rested atop his face.

"Not anymore it doesn't."

She had almost swatted Kincaid's cover off his face, but it wasn't as though he needed to be awake. She just wanted him to be.

"Whys that?"

"Because over there we sure as shit weren't worshiped let alone looked at as heroes. We also didn't help kill thousands of men in a single engagement."

 _No, we were looked at as infidels, invaders on their lands. But at least the fucking insurgents had some intelligence, these people? Stubborn? Or just stupid?  
_

Kurokawa sat silent for a moment, Afghan wasn't her war. She knew deep down that this campaign wasn't anywhere near as bad as Afghanistan. Especially not as bad as Iraq, a war she knew there were plenty of veterans from operating here. Frankly, she just didn't know what to say.

"Well, I can understand that. Say Jasper...that story from before, your Afghan one. When can we talk about it?"

Kincaid shifted and scratched his chest before wrapping his arms around his waist. "The next time we're free and I'm not about to pass out."

"Promise?"

Kincaid slowly gave her a thumbs up before his arm lazily flopped back down. "Promise."

"Good, I'll hold you to that."

Silence reigned supreme for a short while until Kincaid shifted a bit. "Wait, aren't you going to check the others?"

Kurokawa smiled as she began gathering her things, hopping off the front slope she winked at him before donning her helmet and slinging her rifle.

"Plausible deniability Jasper."

With that, she made her way back to the other infantry teams. The courtyard had been cleared for the most part, but there were still a lot of bodies to tend to, both alive and dead.

As she walked away she left a confused but too tired to care Kincaid to slowly go back to sleep. A sleep that was once again shortly interrupted this time by the rest of the crew.

"Dude, you know she came over here just to talk to you."

"Yeah bro she was bullshitting you from jump street."

" _Si Hermano_ , when you gonna act on that? Fraternization or not you gotta clear the air up."

"Actually, that shit doesn't apply here. Since she's from a different military ole lover boy won't get charged, well as long as it doesn't get too out of hand."

"Bruh, shit _**always** _ gets out of hand. One minute they'll be holding hands and picking out medieval trinkets, the next he'll be giving her a "private" tour of the tank."

Kincaid promptly smacked his hand on the front slope's rough surface. "Wilkes, not everyone here is thinking with their pants."

 _Totally a lie._

"Bullshit, mark my words bruh. By the end of this deployment there's gonna be some weird lookin ass babies popping up out of nowhere. I heard some rumors that some platoon commander in Three Four is already laying the mack on one of those cat girls, they saved her and some others from some sort of slave caravan."

"Well, I guarantee you once command gets wind of that they'll put the brakes on it. You really think that shit is gonna fly? Anyways as long as none of those babies are yours we'll be good. I think we can all agree that your kids would come out just as fucked up as you, the cat ears wouldn't help either.

"Message!"

A series of tired chuckles echoed shortly after that and things went back to being quiet for a while. Kincaid groaned and inched his way up the front slope and to the base of the turret. When he reached his destination he placed his boonie cover under his head and placed his head in the shade provided by the turret.

"But back on the topic of Kurokawa. The hell makes me so special?" He lay there for a moment before he heard Elton mumble from beneath his own boonie cover.

This time Elton responded. "Chicks like unique things, you're a Marine tanker bro. You're also a veteran with a far left or far right personality depending on the situation, plus you're a nerd. Way I see it, she's never met a guy quite like you before. She's probably interested off that alone, once she finds out how well traveled you are and the kind of family you're from? You'll have her sold."

Kincaid scoffed as he began to close his eyes. "Yeah well I'm here on a job, I don't exactly have time for that sorta thing."

 _Another lie._

"There's _**always**_ time for that sort of thing bro. You just gotta reach out and grab it."

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Look just shut the fuck up so I can get some sleep alright?"

 _He's totally right._

Suddenly Aldritch's voice came out loud enough for the whole courtyard to hear. "Tankers form it up!"

A long series of groans followed as each of the tanks' crews began to make their way towards the center, forming a small circle around Aldritch; they stood, knelt, and sat as they were given the word for the next "adventure". Clouds of smoke began to appear as various Marines began to light up cigarettes.

"Alright...how's everyone doing?"

A few unenthusiastic "Rah"'s rang out before silence began to settle over the platoon. Aldritch sighed and rubbed his forehead, morale was understandably low.

"Alright, alright. I get it, we're tired, we want to get some sleep, maybe test our luck and my patience and flirt with the local women. Looking at you Parker."

Parker and Elton looked at each other as they exchanged amused glances. They both shared a common name and in an MOS where first name basis was standard, it made for some interesting situations.

"Sir, which Parker?"

"The white one."

"Of course..."

A series of laughs followed by some enthusiastic "Rah"'s rang out before Aldritch put his hands out to get some quiet.

"Boys, phenomenal job out there. Once again Second Tanks has proven its worth and shown once again that we are the ace in the hole. Colonel Kane himself has extended his thanks and congratulations for a job well done. But you know what they say, no rest for the wicked, and boys there's plenty of wicked to go around. That been said, we've been tasked to provide security at each of the roads leading to Italica. Some important diplomatic talks are about to go down and between you and I? Something tells me we're about to have our own FOB, a place to call our own where can finally do things our way."

Some hushed whispers spread throughout the platoon, their own FOB? Diplomatic talks? What was next?

"Though I haven't been exactly briefed as to what the talks will entail, Major Joyce is currently the commanding officer in charge here. He'll be present to discuss the terms and agreements to be laid out, but we can't have anyone show up and spoil the party. So each tank will break off and head to predetermined checkpoints leading to here. Once the talks are over, we're going to break off and head back here."

At this point no one was complaining anymore, overwatch was one the easiest gigs a tanker could do. Hours of sitting inside a tank was hardly a fun time, but it also beat road marches and assaults. Being independent and away from prying eyes also made things less stressful, it also made for some good sleep too.

"Now for some good news, we'll be shacking up here tonight. As an act of good will, the Major has offered his boys to stand guard duty tonight. That means more sleep for us, but be vigilant all the same. Last thing we need are curious locals trying to climb aboard. Any questions?"

Silence reigned supreme once again as the tankers merely shook their heads.

"Right then; Four you have the Eastern, Three you have the Southern, Two Western, and my tank the Northern. Alright, Horsemen mount up and roll out, let's get this shit done with."

"Errrrr!"

 _And may god have mercy on the poor sods who try to start shit at one of the checkpoints. Cause my boys won't._

In moments tankers scrambled to their vehicles, engines began to roar to life, comm checks were carried out, and four M1A1s rolled out to their predetermined spots.

* * *

 **OUTSIDE FORMAL ESTATE MEETING ROOM**

Emerson and the rest of Hitman watched with annoyed eyes as an argument began to break out between Itami and 2/6's commanding officer Major Joyce. In truth they weren't picking any sides, they were there as Joyce's "bodyguard" should anything go awry. Emerson didn't care much for politics, he was a trigger puller, not a soothsayer.

Just like any warm blooded Marine.

"Sir, what right do you have to bring Italica under your control? I thought you were here to support us."

"We are Lieutenant Itami, but command has deemed it necessary for us to be able to operate independently should the time arise. It's hard to **_mutually defend_** when we're all crammed into one big sardine can back at Alnus. Besides, last time I checked a Self Defense Force didn't continuously push forward in acts of aggression. This helps keep the heat off your back. Besides, the people here are clearly in need of a helping hand. Or did you miss the damage we caused?"

"In what way? We're not here to occupy anything further past Alnus. We're not here to conquer this land."

"Conquer? That's pretty bold coming from someone who's nation is declaring an entire goddamn world as an extension of their own lands. Your PM's words not mine."

The Major paused before continuing his verbal assault. The last thing he had the patience for was a junior officer talking out of his ass and it showed on his face beginning to turn red.

"So you mean to tell me you're just going to sit your happy asses at Alnus and not push out any further? Oh surely your leaders aren't thinking about the potential resources here. I was born on a day, but it wasn't yesterday Itami. You can play the hero card all you want, but nothing is free. Not in this world, our world, or any other."

Itami froze for a moment as he tried to find the words to say. He never got the chance.

"Listen _**lieutenant**_ , why don't you leave the art of carrying out occupation operations to those who have done so. It's not like these people have the means to properly defend themselves, what we're doing here isn't any different than what we've done before."

"And look how that turned out."

"What was that?"

Before Itami could utter another word Emerson walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Stand down Itami, you can't win this one. Go see to your men, I'm sure they're just as shook up as everyone else."

Defeated, Itami sighed and nodded, making his way down the hallway with a glum looking Kuwahara in tow.

Joyce ran his hand across his forehead as he sighed. "The "Hero of Ginza", who the fuck does that dumbass think he is?"

Emerson merely shrugged at the question. "He's a little eccentric, maybe a little naive, but I get the feeling his heart is in the right place. Just the right guy in the wrong place that's all."

"Yeah? Well the road to ruin is paved with good intentions. I don't need some boot ass self defense force lieutenant trying to school me, I should've fried his ass right then and there." The major paused and rubbed his forehead. "God damn Japanese."

Nutt had been listening in on the exchange and felt like it was time for his "two cents".

"Hell of a wrong place for him to be eh boss?"

"Can it Nutt."

The Corporal enthusiastically stood at attention for a moment before returning to his original position. Meanwhile, Joyce shook his head and turned to face the large wooden door in front of him. On the other side of the door were the Imperials, the people he was about to begin delegations with.

The first step on the road to making some damn progress, taking in a deep breathe Joyce opened the door and entered the meeting room, Hitman following behind him.

* * *

 _Meanwhile,_

 **1600 HOURS, EASTERN APPROACH TO ITALICA**

 _Felicia is gonna love this._

Van Hauser opened his Humvee's passenger door and reached for his assault pack, in truth this had been the fourth time he had done it since his squad had made their way out to their checkpoint. It felt nice to do something like this for once, it had been too long since he had actually been given the chance to. Unzipping his assault pack's largest pouch, he fished around inside and found the object he was searching for, a gift.

He eyed the elaborate jeweled necklace he had traded a few scales for back at Italica, sitting in his fingerless gloved hands it looked out of place, just like the woman he was slowly developing feelings for. Shaking his head with a smile, he placed it back inside his assault pack, closed the Humvee's door, and continued to look down the road.

"Damn, we haven't even been here a month and you're already catching the feelings for puss in boots?"

Boyd laughed from atop the Humvee as his legs hung down over the front window, his M39 cradled in his arms. For once he had actually forgone his usual tan cap, instead sporting his issued Kevlar. If the rest of the squad heard him they certainly didn't show it as they mindlessly paced around the makeshift sign they had put a few feet ahead.

Unlike their Japanese counterparts sitting in their Komatsu LAV parallel to them on the other side of the road, the Marines were restless. Even with the few awkward and laden with broken English conversations they had, time just seemed to drag on. The heat from the blaring sun and the nauseating smell of death coming from Italica didn't help either.

Occasionally a gunshot would ring out from some poor soul being given a merciful death or an unlucky vulture who simply got too close to one of the medical teams out in the fields. While their Japanese counterparts had jumped in their seats more than once, the Marines simply rolled their eyes. One shot hardly meant anything, it was when you heard multiple shots that something was up.

"It's okay to be jealous Boyd, I mean if all I ever fucked were my cousins I'd be pretty envious too."

"Jesus, isn't that the fourth time you've used that joke? I'm not knocking ya, William, we've been in the same platoon for what three years now? I'm happy you've found someone, even if you are a bonafide furry now."

Van Hauser adjusted the sling for his carbine as he lit a cigarette, "You really know how to pull on my heartstrings you know that? Thanks, I guess, _**asshole.**_ "

"Hehe, love you too man."

Before the conversation could continue the two Marines and everyone else looked over their shoulders back towards Italica, an all too familiar sound was making its way up the road. Boyd laughed as he took a sip from his hydration pouch's tube."

"Well, right on schedule. Bring forth Iron Horse!"

In moments a tan M1A1 gunned its way up the road towards them, it's gun elevated and over the front as it kicked up a dust cloud behind it. Upon further examination, the Marines could see the long claw marks on the front right side of its turret.

"Well I'll be damned, it's the dragon fighters!"

By now the Japanese soldiers had hopped out of their LAV and were taking pictures of the tank as it began to slow down. It didn't matter what military you were in, a tank was a tank, it had an allure that was timeless.

Finally, the tank began to creep its way towards the roadblock, its turbine engine wailing as it propelled it forward between the two armored trucks and behind the sign. After a few minutes of it sitting there, its engine finally began to shut down. As it did so its drivers hatch slowly popped up and swung to the right, a large cloud of smoke following it. A small Hispanic looking fellow popped his head up and smiled at the infantry, a lit cigarette in his mouth.

" _Ey! Como Estas?!_ "

Van Hauser and his squad looked at the driver with raised eyebrows as another voice came down from above the tank. "Hey! Any of you guys got any smokes? We're like kinda running low."

Boyd jumped up from his seat and turned to face the tank and its crew, "Hell yeah we do, you guys got any extra room up there for us to sit?!"

The tank's loader and commander exchanged looks before looking at the Marines with their now lowered balaclavas, "Fuck yeah we do sir! Welcome aboard!"

* * *

 **FORMAL ESTATE MEETING ROOM**

In a large elaborate conference room, the delegations between two worlds had begun. On one side Joyce, speaking on behalf of the U.S. Marines. On the other side Princess Piña Co Lada, Hamilton and the Countess of Formal Myui.

Meanwhile, Emerson and his team did their best to look professional as they took up some spots near a back wall. Well, as professional as a nights worth of fighting could make one look. Though their Kevlars had long been taken off and fixed to the front of their plate carriers, they still had the rest of their gear on. As such they had the looks of a group of warriors who wouldn't hesitate to kill once the order was given. A fact not lost on the royalty as they occasionally glanced at them with nervous eyes.

Accompanying the Raiders were a few officers of the JSDF, they were there as spectators to this event. To ensure that the Marines didn't go overboard and everything went as according to plan.

With Lelei standing to the side as a translator, Joyce took a step forward and gave his best bow.

"Princess, Countess. My name is Major Joyce, I am the company commander for Second Battalion Sixth Marine Regiment Bravo Company. On behalf of the United States Marine Corps, I am honored to be having this meeting with you. My men and I were glad to be able to assist you and your people in your time of need."

As Lelei translated the Major's words, the sound of yet another mercy killing rang out causing the royalty to jump in their seats. When the moment of suspense passed, one of Piña's knights, Hamilton came forward with a long scroll in her hands.

"On behalf of the town of Italica, it's rightful ruler Myui of Formal, and Princess Piña Co Lada, Third Imperial Princess of the Empire, we thank both the YuuEss Marine Core and the JayEssDe Ef for their assistance in our time of need. In accordance with proper formalities, we would like to negotiate your compensation."

Now was where things got interesting, all allied eyes fell upon Joyce. This was where he broke the news, the news that things were about to change for Italica and their way of life.

"Respectfully, these proceedings are indeed formalities. My leadership has come to the conclusion that following the siege here, this town is woefully undermanned and incapable of protecting itself should it come under attack again. That been said Imperial Protocol no longer applies here, starting today this town will be occupied by U.S. forces. As the JSDF are our allies, they have full rights to aid us in this town's occupation as well."

A few of the Japanese officers nodded in respect, bad news didn't get any better with age but Joyce had delivered it to the best of his abilities. That was no small feat, especially for a man who was only a company commander.

As Lelei translated the words, both Hamilton and the princess's eyes went wide with shock. "C-come again?"

"As I have said, this town is undermanned and incapable of defending itself in its current state. Your highness, countess, we have come here with nothing but good intentions. In order to promote peace and stability in this region, we have decided to occupy this town in order to aid in its rebuilding and to secure the trade routes for future exchanges. Under the Geneva Convention, we will aid this town, any civilians, and both the wounded of the enemy and your own. The details of which will be divulged to you later."

Hamilton exchanged worried looks with the princess as Lelei translated. Meanwhile, the countess seemed absolutely confused. She understood that these soldiers would be occupying her town, but what was a Geneva Convention?

"The men who originally came here's focus was to trade in dragon scales, now that the situation has changed we'd like to move those profits towards the rebuilding of the town."

Joyce looked at Lelei, searching for confirmation that she was in agreement with this. As the young sorcerer nodded in return Joyce returned his gaze to the Imperials.

"To my knowledge, said scales are currently at a quantity estimated to be at 330,000 Denari this not including the amount we still have at Alnus. These funds combined with any revenue generated by Italica should be more than enough to aid in repairing the damage."

Hamilton took a step forward and began to talk, Lelei translating all the while. "When you mention the Genkneeva Kahnvention, what does that entail in regards to both the citizens and the wounded. Both enemy and our own?"

"To treat them Humanely, what that means is that they will be treated as you would a friend or relative."

At this remark Hamilton clenched her fists, in all her years she had never heard of such absurdity. "Do friends or relatives; burn towns, rape, and plunder?"

"No, but our terms are absolute. We merely intend to occupy this town. Both the original ruler and politics governed here will remain as they did originally, and we will do our best to ensure it stays that way."

Piña exchanged a look with the Countess, taking the time to digest the information and terms that had been given to them. Finally, the countess took a stand, looking at Joyce all the while.

"If you mean what you say, I shall take your word for it."

Hamilton and Piña looked at her with worried looks. "Countess!?"

"Do not interrupt me, I am still the ruling head of Clan Formal. Seeing as how the Empire clearly doesn't care about our safety and well being, Formal will accomplish what they have not. This is still _**our**_ territory in the end."

The young ruler promptly returned her attention to the Major. "Mayjor Joyce? we shall accept your terms, but on one condition."

Joyce and the other allies present in the room looked at the countess with expectant looks, what could her condition possibly be?

"We shall hear you out."

"I wish an audience with the men and women who came to my town, the ones led by Lootenant Aldritch and Itami. If they are to occupy here alongside your forces, it's only fitting we get to know each other more."

Joyce exchanged glances with the Japanese officers, as they nodded in agreement he returned his gaze to the countess as he took a bow

"That can be arranged Ma'am."

"Very good."

And with that, the delegations concluded. As Joyce and Hitman left the room Emerson walked by his side.

"Good show sir, I hate politics you could never get me up there."

Joyce sighed as they made their way down the hallway. "You think I do? I lead men not conduct delegations. So what happens to you now?"

Emerson glanced over at his team as they nodded in return. "We return to Alnus, we might get stationed here, who knows. All I know is we have to report back to Colonel Kane."

"What for?"

"Classified, sorry sir"

"Heh, yeah I know how you raiders operate."

Suddenly Joyce's radio erupted with noise. "Italica this is Checkpoint Echo, be advised we have some uh..." Some yelling went on in the background as the Marine on the other end conversed with his men.

"Rose Order Knights, they say they're from the Capital and they're here for the Princess Piña Co...Lada?"

Joyce grabbed his radio and calmly spoke into it, "Roger we just finished talks with the Princess. Try to resolve the situation peacefully and bring them here with an escort."

"Solid copy, Echo out."

Joyce promptly turned on his heels and made his way back into the conference room, as he stepped inside he eyed Princess Piña with a raised eyebrow.

"Ma'am? We have a bit of a problem."

* * *

 _Meanwhile_

The lead rider, a woman with shoulder length curled blonde hair, stared at the tank with her mouth agape as its barrel aimed directly at her and the rest of her order. All their boldness, their arrogance, all of it had been for naught in the presence of the armored behemoth.

Suddenly Van Hauser exited his Humvee, taking a few steps forward, he eyed Elton. "Alright, they're good to go. You mind escorting them back to Italica? The talks are over, we can watch the road from here."

"Yeah we got em, if they try anything funny we'll give em the what for."

 **XXXXXXX**

 _Earlier_

Everything had been fine and peaceful up until the riders came, Kincaid's crew had been conversing with the Marines and JSDF aboard their tank. War stories were swapped and friendly banter exchanged between the men of two different organizations as cigarettes were lit and the men enjoyed the down time.

The mood abruptly stopped once Kincaid's shouting came from within the tank. Cigarette buds were put out and infantry began to take cover behind their vehicles and the tank, charging handles were racked and safeties flicked off. No one in the mood for bullshit after Italica.

"H-Hey Honcho! I got something coming up the road!"

Elton donned his comm helmet and slid into the turret, taking up his position by his sights he watched as Wilkes charged his loader's 240 and aimed it down the road. As he looked down his sights, he saw what Kincaid saw.

"Well I'll be damned, is that Joan of Ark?"

"Nah it's the bitch brigade."

"No shit?!"

Up the road came a small platoon-sized group of all female riders, clad in ornate armor and atop similarly garbed horses, they flew a flag high and proud. Emblazoned on it was a crest now known to belong to the Empire. They came full speed up the road, as they got closer they promptly stopped in front of the roadblock, their horses mere inches away from the allies.

For a while, they glared at the men with hateful eyes, hateful at their arrogance to dare defy their order. They had been so focused, that they nearly jumped as the tank's turret came to life and jerked its gun in their direction. For a few moments, all was quiet, neither side dared make a move, finally the lead rider came forward.

"I am Bozes Co Palesti of the Rose Order of Knights, identify yourselves!"

Van Hauser took a step forward from next to his Humvee, his men, and the JSDF meanwhile began to spread out, their weapons aimed all the while.

"This is a military checkpoint, state your business!"

By now the allies had completely encircled the riders, a fact that did little to dampen the mood. Unlike the Marines who had dealt with this sort of thing before, the Japanese looked like they were ready to open fire. A couple of the Marines had to stand close to them and shake their heads, this was a situation that required finesse.

"What arrogance! We are Imperial Royalty, we have business in Italica with Princess Piña Co Lada!"

Van Hauser gulped, he knew what he was about to say was hardly good news. "Italica is currently under occupation by the U.S. Marines and the JSDF, we're currently in the midst of some diplomatic talks with the town's leadership. I'm going to need you to wait before I can clear you to enter."

Suddenly Bozes and the riders drew their swords. "What did you say!?"

"I said, you're going to have to wait." Van Hauser tightened his grip on his carbine, the rest of his men and the Japanese doing the same.

In moments swords were unsheathed and rifles were brought up, Bozes raising her voice all the while. "We answer to nobody except Princess Piña Co Lada. You will move or we will make you move!"

Van Hauser glared. "Not a wise idea Ma'am. If you could just calm down-"

"I will do no such thing!"

Just as one of the JSDF soldiers had unsafed his rifle, Elton's voice rang out from atop the tank, promptly dissuading the soldier from proceeding any further than that.

"Are you fucking stupid!?"

Everyone present looked at the top of the tank at a now fully exposed Elton, his shotgun aimed directly at Bozes. "Lady I don't think you understand the situation you're in. There's a fucking tank in front of you, what the hell do you possibly hope to achieve by trying to fight us?!"

Van Hauser simply stood by and let the corporal continue, whatever he was doing was starting to work.

Elton made his way down the turret and stopped just at the edge of it pointing down to the claw marks on the turret and blood stains that adorned the hull.

"You see this? A fucking flame dragon made those, the very same dragon who's ass we kicked! What in god's name do you possibly think you could do?! You see this blood? That's from the assholes who tried to storm into this place, all dead by our hands and the hands of the fine gentlemen you see here. Italica and its leadership still stand thanks to us, now if you would just please shut your fucking mouth! All of this could go a lot smoother."

Bozes sat there stumped as to what to say, she had been promptly put her in her place. For the first time in years she had been made humble. This was in no small part due to the fact that this blood stain covered man claimed to have fought a flame dragon, and won.

"Tank?.."

"Yes a goddamn tank, we command terrible fire magic and have the ability to destroy you and your order with but a word. You would do well to sheath your weapons lest you invoke our wrath!"

Seeing the situation for what it was, Bozes nodded to her riders, they in turn slowly sheathed their swords.

Elton looked at Van Hauser as he made his way back to his cupola. "If she tries anything we have a can round in the tube, just make sure to cover your ears sir."

"Yeah, got it. Appreciate the assistance corporal." He paused before raising an eyebrow. "Who taught you how to talk like black Shakespeare by the way?"

Elton took a seat atop his cupola, lighting a cigarette and keeping his shotgun aimed directly at Bozes.

"My dumbass gunner's cartoons."

 **XXXXXXX**

Elton and Wilkes watched as Bozes and the rest of her knights slowly continued up the road, the tank slowly following them trackpad over trackpad. Occasionally one of the riders would slowly look over their shoulder at the tank, only to quickly return their gaze to the road ahead when Elton or Wilkes glared at them.

"I'm too fucking tired for this medieval bullcrap right now."

Wilkes leaned back against his hatch as he loosened his grip on his 240. "Bruh you're telling me, like I don't get it. If I didn't know what a tank was and I saw this shit? I'd be dropping to my knees, was stupidity a common thing in the medieval ages?"

Kincaid's voice came through the tank's net as a mumble. "We're talking about the same people who chucked spears at us during the Ginza fight, so yeah, sounds about right. Look let's just get this shit done with and get some relax time in."

"Agreed, we drop these broads off, park the tank, after ops, chow, sleep?"

All the tankers nodded their heads in agreement. "Sleep!"

"Whoah heads up!"

Suddenly a small team of ATVs gunned it down the road towards the knights and the tank, their riders obscured by their thick dark brown cloaks and hoods. To the tankers, they were known as Hitman, but to the knights, they looked like phantoms. Interestingly enough, one of the ATV's had the siren from earlier riding on the back, her arms wrapped around one of the Raiders.

She looked petrified to say the least.

Before the knights had the chance to react to these strange new contraptions and their riders, Elton yelled over the tank's engine.

"They're with us! Stand down!"

As the quads got closer, they promptly split up and passed the group on either side.

"Oorah Raiders!"

The only acknowledgment that Emerson and his team gave the tankers were a series of nods and waves. Once they passed the group, they sped off towards Alnus. With the situation back to normal, the group continued on its path towards Italica, the crew breaking back into its usual banter.

"Well, that's enough cameos for one day don't you think?"

"The hell are you talking about?"

"I dunno I'm just bored."

"Yeah? I'm bored too, but what the hell do you mean cameos?"

"Well we worked with them before, I mean..."

"Bruh, just shut up Four-Eyes"

"Si, you're talking that loco shit man."

"Rampage? Bite me, Little John? I'm kicking your ass when we get back."

"All of you shut the hell up, I'm trying to focus on Joan of Ark and the bitch brigade here. One of em keeps looking at me like I'm some sort of abhuman. She does it again and I'll give her something to be condescending about."

* * *

No sooner had the knights and the tank made their way into Italica, pre-staged infantry teams surrounded the knights. Meanwhile inquisitive looks came down from atop the walls as the men observed the strange newcomers. The knights seemed to get the hint, they were outnumbered and outgunned, better to cooperate at the expense of pride than to be killed where they stood.

As the knights dismounted their horses, the teams then escorted them to the Formar estate. Meanwhile, _Here We Go Again_ slowly backed into its original spot. As the engine shut down and the crew began to dismount, a number of things caught their eyes. First, all of the other tanks were already staged and back in the courtyard. Second, all the other crews were already dismounted and were standing in front of their tanks. Third and finally, Aldritch was talking to another officer.

A Major by a quick glance at his collar.

"Jesus, this can't be good."

Confirming Kincaid's suspicions Aldritch raised his hand into the air and spun it in a circle.

"Horsemen, form up on me!"

"Fucking told you..."

As the tankers once again crowded around their platoon commander, cigarettes were lit and bodies tensed awaiting the news.

"Another successful job men, especially you Four. That was a crisis narrowly averted, especially after the talks just got done."

Kincaid and his crew fist bumped as they exchanged smiles.

"However, looks like we have one more job. Now, before you start crapping your pants and getting all flustered, it's not a combat job. It's a hearts and minds job."

The tankers of Horsemen platoon looked at each other with worried looks, hearts and minds wasn't part of their M.O. All they wanted to do was kick back and relax.

"The Countess Myui, as well as her Imperial dignitaries have sent forth their thanks to us and RCT3. They have also expressed the desire to meet us. Gentlemen, put on your smiles and good suits. We're about to get recognized alongside RCT3"

The tankers looked around with raised eyebrows, why did anyone want to meet them? More importantly, they were hardly dressed for the occasion.

"We'll be heading to the estate in fifteen minutes, so shave if you haven't already. And Four? For god's sake change your goddamn FROG shirts."

Kincaid and his crew looked at their blood stained shirts before smiling at Aldritch. "Rah Sir."

"Very good, alright boys you know the drill. Hop to it, oh and Four? Stay here a moment."

As the rest of the crews took off to their respective tanks to "freshen up", Aldritch sighed as he looked at his remaining four tankers. "Well, this is either good news or bad news depending n how you want to take it, I don't want the other crews knowing right now as they might get...well a little jealous."

Elton took a step forward as he raised an eyebrow. "Sir? What's going on?" Meanwhile, Kincaid and the others mirrored Elton's expression, they were just as curious."

"Right, well I got the word while we were at our checkpoint. The Diet summons have invited some Marines to speak on behalf of the whole and since you guys are apparently the "Dragon Fighters" as well as the ones who are now plastered all over television screens riding to the gate with Itami? You'll be accompanying me to the diet."

"Eh!?"

All the tankers including Elton simultaneously dropped their mouths low like an open breech. Suddenly questions began flying at Aldritch from all sides as the four men began their barrage.

"How!?"

"Why!?"

"What will we wear!?"

"Sir we're just tankers! Why us!?"

"We have to get all shaved and prettied don't we!?"

Aldritch put his hands out as his face twisted into a frown. "Boys? Yes, I understand we're tankers, yes I understand it's sudden. But this is coming from the colonel himself. Believe it or not, the Third Marine Expeditionary Brigade is slated to start making its way through the gate here in the next month. Times are changing and there's a lot of moving pieces going into this campaign.

The officer paused and rubbed his eyes. Motivating speech or not, he really wasn't in the mood for going to a big political summons. He tried his best to motivate the men however.

"I don't know why they want us to accompany Itami and the others, but that's that. Think of it as a chance for you to become famous. We've already made a name for ourselves here, might as well do it back home too right?"

Accepting defeat Elton and the others sighed before Aldritch dismissed them. As they made their way to the tank, the crew began to voice their opinions.

"Hey, at least, we'll get to wear normal people clothes and get some libo."

"Bruh, this shit is a trap. Watch we'll go, talk, someone will fuck something up and we'll all get in trouble.

"Yeah? Only if you talk Wilkes, I think this is a golden opportunity...for more supplies."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he hopped atop the tank. "Whatever, we're fucking tankers, not public talkers. Mark my words you guys this shit is not gonna be good."

As the crew made their way to the bustle rack, they opened their assault packs and began taking out fresh FROG shirts.

Taking them off had brokered a number of responses; a few catcalls from the Marines manning Italica's walls, some curious eyes from the villagers eyeing the strange colored shirtless men and their tattoos, and one the tankers had really could've done without.

"Mmmm oh my, please don't mind me."

As they looked down the side of the tank they saw the origin of the voice. A now blushing Rory Mercury holding her face.

"Please do take your time, no rush."

One by one each of the tankers groaned.

"Ugh...why us?"

"God..please go away."

"Fucking jailbait."


	16. Of Mansions, Marines, Maids

**Chapter 14: Of Mansions, Marines, Maids, and Greener Pastures.  
**

" _Admiration of the Nation  
_

 _We're the finest ever seen_

 _And we glory in the title_

 _Of United States Marine."_

Early worlds to the last stanza of the first verse of the "Marines Hymn".

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION 1800 HOURS, KANE'S OFFICE, CAMP ALNUS, SPECIAL REGION  
**

Kane shuffled through some more paperwork as he began going over the after action report on Italica. No allied casualties, approximately 10,000 KIA, multiple wounded, an HVT successfully detained, and Italica under USMC control.

Of course for all the positive news, there were still some questions that rose from the attack itself. Just who were these bandits, and why were some of them wearing armor now known to be affiliated to the "Empire"? The same Empire that was now known to be the perpetrators of the Ginza incident.

Then of course, there was the Siren and her abilities. Comm jamming and deflecting small arms being chief among them. She would have to be questioned in time.

Kane merely shrugged and smiled as he got a good stretch in, this report was still enough to make any leader in his position smile with pride. Better still, it was his tanks and the Raiders that had been the vanguard yet again, the rock against which the enemy wave broke against. He made a note to begin the paperwork for promotions later. After all, a good deed deserves a good reward and his tankers had been performing beyond expectations time and time again.

 _Hopefully, the First Battalion tankers perform the same when they get here._

Kane's train of thought was abruptly interrupted as a series of knocks came at his door.

"Colonel Kane, sir it's Lieutenant Emerson."

"Ah good, come in."

The door slowly opened and in walked a tired Emerson, still clad in his gear from the field, he no doubt came directly to Kane's office once his boys and him made their way back onto the base.

"Emerson, good to see you. Bang up job you and our boys did over there, then again, I never doubted the Raiders."

Kane pointed to the chair sitting in front of his desk as Emerson made his way over, "Have a seat son, make yourself comfortable."

Emerson nodded as he took a seat, unslinging his carbine and placed it across his lap. Once he was situated Kane interlocked his fingers.

"So, how was it?"

"With all due respect sir? A pain in the ass."

"That so? Can't say I blame you, the reports said those bandits were certainly tenacious."

"Understatement of the century sir, try more like suicidal. They probably didn't mention Lieutenant Itami's reluctance to push his men out anywhere until last minute either. We had to take their LAV to get the job done."

"Well...I'll be sure to edit that in the paperwork, now for the fun part. Rory."

Emerson raised an eyebrow as he leaned back in his chair. "You want my unofficial thoughts? Or official?"

Kane rubbed his forehead as he sighed, another headache to add to his growing pile.

" _ **Both**_."

"Well, unofficially I think she's a danger and a liability. She's a wildcard and I'm curious as to know why she's so fond of us, especially the tankers. Well, Horsemen Four in particular, she's up to something sir. Call it intuition."

"And officially?"

"Officially she could be a valuable asset, the locals definitely seem to hold her in high esteem. Her abilities, as well as her standing, could prove useful in the coming campaign."

Kane finished rubbing his head as he set his hands back to their original position.

"Okay Emerson, let's cut to the chase. Miller practically wants that girl dead, do you agree or not? To be honest, the last thing I need is to set up a kill team and make her disappear. No doubt the Japanese and Itami won't find that too favorable given their close relations with the refugees. However, I'm not willing to put the lives of my men at risk. I'm not about to have another Afghanistan or Iraq."

Emerson sighed as he weighed the options given to him, he was a simple man, a military man. He viewed the world through a black and white perspective. You were either the enemy or an ally, and right now Rory was questionably in between. Kane was right too however, pulling triggers this early probably wasn't the best course of action.

So he made his decision.

"I say we wait sir, she's operating in close contact with RCT3 and the tankers. We inform Aldritch of the bigger picture and tell him to keep his eyes open. He gives regular updates and we operate off that."

Silence fell across the room as both men sat there for a few moments, finally Kane sat up straight and looked at Emerson with a nod.

"Right then, that's what we do. I can agree with that arrangement."

The two sat in silence for a few moments before Emerson took control of the conversation once more.

"Sir, why are we here?"

Kane coughed violently, he hadn't been expecting a question like that out of the blue. Especially from a junior officer, as he settled down he raised an eyebrow.

"Come again?"

"Respectfully sir? Why are we here? I'm not against the mission, but what are we getting out of this? I understand the need to find answers, to make someone pay for what happened at Ginza. But sir? Three divisions and a MEU? Seems more like an invasion to me."

Kane sat in silence for a few moments, Emerson was only a Lieutenant, but he was MARSOC. Truth be told if anyone deserved to be in the know, it was them.

"It's simple Emerson. We're here to make sure the Japanese don't fuck this up, you're right we're not getting anything out of this, though our Commander in Chief believes we will eventually. Untapped resources, unknown amounts of land, a real buyer's market, and it all belongs to the Japanese more or less"

Emerson sighed loudly as he shook his head, he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Sir? So what you're saying is, we're babysitters?"

"Precisely Emerson, we're here to make sure everything goes smoothly. If not? We're going to put our foot down and make sure the Japanese don't do something that will jeopardize themselves and the bridging of our worlds. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity Emerson, the last thing we need is a country that hasn't seen combat since World War Two potentially destroying that opportunity."

"Sounds like command has a lot of faith in our allies."

"They do and don't. It's for their own good and everyone else in the international community. This is their first deployment and that war fighter mentality isn't born overnight. Someone's gotta be here to make sure they don't step out of line, we put our foot down when we need to."

Emerson nodded, there was reason to what Kane was saying. He saw it first hand when Itami verbally attacked Joyce back at Italica. The man had no idea how an occupation was actually dealt with and yet here he was serving his country that had an intention of doing more than just that, ignorance was truly bliss.

"So we're really not getting anything out of this?"

"Not yet, but if and when we do? We do it the right way, through trade agreements. Us being here puts us in good standing with the Japanese, hopefully they'll finally see us for the ally we're trying to be. Maybe then people will stop wanting us out of Japanese waters."

"Is that still a thing? I thought their Prime Minister was all for us staying. I mean, it's not like we haven't been pulling our own weight. Or did the 2011 Tsunami relief operation we led not mean jack shit?"

"It's the usual back and forth bullshit lieutenant. Some people both Japanese and otherwise still think our troops are off rampantly raping anything that moves. It's more of a middle finger to the people doubting us."

Emerson folded his arms. "Understood and what if we have to put our foot down? Take control of the situation? Then what happens?"

Kane sighed as he ran a hand over his regulation haircut. "Honestly Emerson? I hope and pray it doesn't come to that, something tells me there's a storm coming. Things have been too smooth so far and there's still a lot about this world we don't know."

"No arguments there sir, I feel it too."

"Good, make sure your men are as prepared as you."

Emerson nodded. "Raiders are always prepared."

"Good, now was that all Emerson?"

"Yes sir, am I free to go back to my men?"

Kane sat up straight as he regarded Emerson with approving eyes. "Yes you're dismissed, once again outstanding job out there. You and your boys go get some rest, you've earned it."

Emerson nodded and slowly stood up, slinging his carbine all the while. As he made his way to the door, Kane called out to him.

"Oh and Emerson, the Third Marine Expeditionary Brigade is going to start trickling in through the gate over these next few weeks. Thought you'd like to know."

Emerson nodded and made his way to the door. "Yeah, definitely a storm coming."

With that Emerson made his way out the door, closing it behind him.

And then promptly opening it again.

"Sir, thought you should know. That Siren? She's at the refugee area, we didn't know what to do with her. Didn't feel quite right to just throw her into the brig. We informed the Japanese guards to keep an eye on her."

"Good, thank you Emerson."

"We aim to please sir."

Once he was gone, Kane laid back against his chair as he stared at the ceiling, rubbing his stress filled eyes all the while.

"General Augustine, you're going to have one hell of a field day with this place."

Suddenly a knock on Kane's door interrupted his train of thought, the door promptly opening and revealing Chief Miller's wizened operator face.

"Sir, my boys are in the capital now. We got a live feed up in the ops room if you want to see."

Kane nodded with a smirk before fetching his eight point cover and personal weapon.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

* * *

 **1900 HOURS ITALICA, FORMAL ESTATE  
**

After locking up the tanks and ensuring all sensitive items, mounted weapons, and gear were stowed, the tankers of horsemen platoon finally began their journey through Italica's winding streets. Everywhere they went they were met with a variety of responses; cheers from infantry teams on patrol, looks of curiosity from the villagers, and even the occasional giggle and wink from a woman or two.

Just another day as a tanker.

Finally, after reaching the Formal estate the tankers stood there, their mouths agape as they began to take in the sight in front of them.

"Well shiiiit, look at that. We're moving on up in the world boys!"

"Heh, hey you think they got television?"

"Of course they don't have fucking television numb nuts. I bet they got some dope ass food though."

"No dude, this is all a trap. We have to fight a boss here, I saw it in Castlevania sixty-four once."

"Right? Ah, man the memories! You'd be running around with Reinhart and the whip, cracking skeletons and shit!"

"Dunn, Kincaid...just...quiet."

"Yo Wilkes, you get to go into the big house today! Yessir!"

"Hey Parker, if you don't shut the fuck up with that southern ass shit."

As the tankers went back and forth Aldritch turned around having led them to the estate itself. Coughing loudly, he got everyone's attention as he began to go over some ground rules.

"Boys, now I know this goes without saying as to just how important this is. We're meeting royalty, representatives of not only this town, but of the Empire itself. That been said? _**Do**_... _ **not**_... _ **fuck**_... _ **this**_... _ **up**_ , we tracking? Itami and the others are inside waiting for us."

The tankers exchanged grins as they looked at each other to confirm everyone was indeed "tracking".

"Rah!"

"Okay, let's go then."

As the platoon made its way down the central path leading to the estate, Kincaid and the rest of his crew and a much different idea in mind. Reaching into his pocket, he took out his iPhone. Useless as it was in regards to making calls or texting, it could still record videos and take photos, the latter being what Kincaid had in mind.

"Yo, guys, go stand over by one of the statues!"

As the rest of the platoon made their way ahead, some of the other tankers began to notice as Kincaid began recording Wilkes, Benitez, and Elton.

"Okay and...rolling!"

Wilkes, Benitez, and Elton smiled as they went "live".

"Yo, yo! This ya boy Darian Wilkes Jr. AKA Rampage and on today's episode of MTV cribs we're coming to ya live from the Special Region!"

Wilkes motioned to Benitez and Elton before he pointed at the statue. "Over here we got this big ass statue, yeah its naked as fuck! But it looks official as hell don't it? You know, when you get that paper and them good record deals you can get shit like this!"

The rest of the platoon was now laughing up a storm as the crew of Horsemen Four made their way over to one of the central fountains, this time, it was Elton's turn to add the commentary.

"Yo, this is ya boy Parker Elton AKA Honcho. Follow me on twitter you know? Anyways we got this big ass fountain over here, sometimes I look at it when I'm strolling through my estate you know? Other times I just strip butt ass naked and dunk my balls into it! Because why the fuck not?! Guap and uh get money dolphins!"

Meanwhile, Benitez began walking around with his trousers hiked up high as he tried to look as thuggish as the rest of his crew.

By now Aldritch had caught onto the gig and was now making his way to the rear, for a moment he had actually joined in on the platoon's laughter. He was an officer though and as befitting his rank he had to put the proverbial boot down.

"What the hell?! Stop fucking around and let's go!"

As the laughter began to die down Kincaid and his crew chuckled as they made their way back to the rest of the platoon. But not before Kincaid spun his phone around and began recording his face.

"This has been another episode of MTV cribs! Four-Eyes signing off!"

As Kincaid turned his phone off he quickly adjusted the sling for his carbine and made his way back to the rest of the platoon.

As the platoon got closer to the estate, one of the large wooden doors promptly opened. The sight that awaited the tankers was one they were hardly ready for. Even Aldritch wasn't prepared, as far as he was concerned this was his first time seeing them too.

Standing in a line in the main lobby awaited maids and quite a few of them too.

As the platoon made their way inside, they began taking off their boonie covers, staring at the maids all the while. It wasn't so much them being maids that had caught the tankers' eyes, but the fact that just about every one of them wasn't human.

Anthropomorphic was the more applicable term here. From cats, rabbits, to even one that looked like one of the gorgons of ancient roman history. They were all here present and accounted for. But for all their beauty, all their voices when they said "Good evening master"?

Some of the Marines were actually a little startled.

Everyone knew elves, that was no big thing. Everyone knew ogres and dragons, again nothing the old story books hadn't shown before. But cat girls? Bunny women? Medusa or rather something that looked like her? This was the last nail in the coffin, anything was possible at this point.

However not all the tankers were lost, in fact, this was a golden opportunity. One not lost on Kincaid and Benitez as they put an arm around each others' shoulder.

"Benitez...the promised land, it has found us."

"Life is good man"

Noticing this, Elton and Wilkes shook their heads. "Fucking nerds."

Meanwhile, an elderly woman, one that Aldritch and the men deduced to be the head maid, made her way to the front of the others. As she bowed the other maids did so in kind.

"Welcome to the Formal Estate, I am head maid Kaine. The Countess Myui and the rest of your comrades are expecting you. We are honored to have the defenders of Italica here with us this evening."

As Kaine continued to talk Elton had an epiphany. Formal, he had heard that name before.

"Yo Kincaid."

"What?"

"Didn't we kill some guy named Formal?"

"...We did?"

"Yeah you don't remember? Ginza? The guy that charged at us with the fucking spear? Those guys with him kept yelling Formal or some shit."

"...They did?"

"Yeah I could hear em over the engine, I shit you not."

"...Oh yeah that guy...woops."

Kincaid and Elton's hushed conversation was promptly interrupted as all the maids bowed again and smiled at the tankers.

"We are happy to serve you, masters!"

Back to reality, or something close to it.

The tankers merely stood there baffled, never had they been put in a situation such as this. Dog and ponies were one thing, family days another common part of fleet Marine life as well, but being served by maids in a medieval mansion? That was unfamiliar territory.

Marines weren't supposed to get the good treatment after all.

Noting that his men were too caught up eyeing the "scenery" Aldritch shook his head and stepped forward. As he stood at attention, the other Marines followed in a perfect copy.

"Lieutenant James Aldritch, Second Tank Battalion Charlie Company Headquarters Platoon. Marines?"

As one, every tanker present immediately went to parade rest, their voices coming together as one and echoing throughout the massive lobby.

"Good evening ladies!"

As their boots came together and almost shook the room the maids stood there impressed. Some had even giggled and blushed. Looking at the maids with a stern face, the head maid nodded her head at Aldritch.

"That was a fine display of discipline, your warriors are as steadfast as the rumors say."

Aldritch merely smiled as he stood proud. "We aim to please ma'am."

As the head maid nodded in response, she slowly turned and beckoned the tankers. "If you would please follow me, I will take you to the others."

Aldritch spun on his heels as he turned to face his platoon. "At ease men, you heard the lady. Let's get moving."

As the tankers went at ease they began to follow Kaine and Aldritch up the stairs. As Kincaid and his crew passed by the other maids, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eyes.

The Medusa was staring at him.

Her serpent-like yellow eyes filled with curiosity as he passed. Her pointed ears poked out on either side of her head caused her "hair" to naturally droop over them. Coupled with her rosy red cheeks, she had a cherubic appearance about her. She was a small thing, in fact Kincaid deduced that even Janice was taller than her.

Then again, much like her brother, Janice was taller than most.

Time seemed to pass slowly as their eyes met, it was like as if she was staring into his mind itself. Kincaid's heart began to race at what felt like a million miles a minute. He wasn't a stranger to this feeling and his mind began to race as he knew what was starting to form in his mind.

Attraction.

Kincaid's mind tried to reason with him, tell him it was justified. But it wasn't, the woman in front of him wasn't human. And he didn't care, she still looked human enough. A pretty face was a pretty face.

 _She's...beautiful._

After a while the maid cocked her head to the side and smiled, a few strands of her "Hair" following Kincaid's movement as he passed. Kincaid tried to respond with a smile of his own, but instead wound up looking like a fool as his mouth twisted into some sort of bizarre half smile. Something that only made the girl smile even more. Kincaid felt his heart rate jump exponentially, his blood pumping faster as his feet began to feel heavy.

He'd never felt something like this before it was like there was some sort of spell being cast on him. It scared him, but he also wanted to learn more.

Noticing this exchange Benitez nudged Kincaid and whispered, bewilderment behind his words.

"Of all the ones you chose, it had to be Medusa herself? That's fucking bizarre man."

Silence.

"Bro?"

Kincaid snapped out of the trance-like state he was in, shaking his head a bit.

"W-what?"

"Dude you were just hardcore staring at Medusa, and she was doing the same."

As Kincaid followed the others upstairs he glanced over his back one last time, she was still smiling at him.

"Yeah, dude I dunno...I really don't. I feel kinda weird to be honest."

Benitez chuckled as he pat Kincaid on the back. "Looks like medic-chan has some competition."

"S-shutup man, it ain't like that."

"Maybe not for you, but you and I both know how she feels. "It's not like that" whatever, but I've got my eyes set on the Energizer Bunny."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as they began to go down a hallway his senses slowly going back to normal. "Yeah alright, go right ahead _ **Rico Suave**_."

 **XXXXXXX**

As the Marines were led down some elaborate hallways they were given a brief history of the estate by Kaine.

To Aldritch, it was a history lesson, to the other Marines it was all chatter. They were too busy focusing on the maids they had met moments earlier, who just so happened to now be following them.

A few of the bolder Marines had attempted to lag behind and converse with the maids, much to their platoon commander's annoyance. As much as Aldritch wanted to put the proverbial boot to their asses, he was too busy trying to pay attention to Kaine. So in the end he merely glanced back at the wayward Marines with a look that said, "Your ass is grass when we're done here."

Typical Marines.

They boasted about their accomplishments and tried to amaze the maids with wild tales of where they came from and what they do for a living.

Typical Marines.

Kincaid and Benitez were no exceptions, having long lagged back to strike up a conversation with the two they had set their eyes on. Elton and Wilkes simply didn't care, they were too busy having fun watching from up ahead.

As Kincaid found the maid he was looking for, he matched his pace with hers. His heart was racing all the while as he extended a hand out to the Medusa, a warm smile growing on his face as he tried to break the proverbial ice.

"So...the names Jasper, Jasper Kincaid. What's yours?"

A few strands of her "hair" rose up as they reached out to get a better look at him as she cocked her head to the side.

"I'm Aurea, a maid in service to clan Formal."

 _No shit? I'm an astronaut._

Kincaid raised an eyebrow as some of the bolder snakes tried to reach out and actually touch him. He felt like he was making first contact with an alien race and for all intents and purposes, he really was.

"So uh, what exactly are you? If you don't mind me asking?"

Aurea's expression twisted into one of puzzlement, like as if what Kincaid had asked was a no brainer. "Why, I'm a Medusa silly. Or have you never seen one before?"

"Well...no. I mean there's ancient stories about uh...your kind where I come from."

Aurea's eyes filled with excitement at this statement, her hair starting to act up all the while. "Really? So people haven't forgotten about us completely?"

"Uh no, not at all!"

"And you are not, bothered by me?"

"Am I supposed to be?"

 _What the hell is she talking about?_

By now the snakes seemed pretty adamant on reaching Kincaid, so as a leap of faith he extended his hand out again and let a few of them do just that. He certainly wasn't afraid of snakes, in fact, he was rather fond of them. They wrapped around a few of his fingers as Aurea smiled noticing the subtle body language Kincaid was displaying.

He liked it and she knew it.

"Noone's ever let them do that before...well except for the old master." She paused as she cocked her head to the side once more. "Your scent reminds me of him too, most peculiar."

 _Really? I didn't think the smell of a tank and a dead man had a lot in common. That or you're saying we both smell like shit._

As the pair continued to walk Kincaid was once again experiencing the same feeling as before. He had become so transfixed staring into her eyes that he hadn't even noticed that she had slightly moved closer.

"Huh? Can't say I'm following."

"You just do, and your _**aura.**_..it's...very peculiar." The Medusa began to size Kincaid up for a few moments, her eyes giving him a thorough examination. " _ **Very**_ peculiar."

"My what?"

Before the conversation could go any further, Johnson snapped his fingers from up ahead as he glared back at the Marines.

Kincaid snapped back to reality shrugging as he looked at Aurea. "Ah crap, I gotta go rejoin the others. My boss is gonna get pissed off, I'll talk to you later?"

As he went to join the others Kincaid felt Aurea's hand wrap around his wrist, giving it a small squeeze as she whispered to him.

"Will you?.."

Kincaid slowly removed her grip from his hand and smiled. "Of course. That's a promise too."

Aurea giggled as she batted her eyes at him. "Good."

Not wanting to piss Johnson off any more than they needed to Kincaid and the others ran up to join the rest of the group, leaving their new found friends giggling as they whispered about the lively young men that graced their estate.

Kincaid walked beside Benitez, a smirk growing on his face as he gave him a pat on the back. "So, saw you talking to the rabbit girl. How'd it go?"

"Eh, how about yours?"

Kincaid smirked as he gave him a thumbs up. "She's gonna add me on Facebook. So what made yours so 'Eh'?"

"Yeah, funny. Real side twister bro. As for me, well I only got her name."

"Oh real slick _**Rico Suave**_ , real fucking slick. You were talking all that Energizer Bunny shit earlier."

"Man come off me. Her name's Mamina alright? How about Medusa's name, _**snake charmer**_?"

"Aurea... _ **wuss**_."

"Wuss? Dog at least I'm not trying to hook up with a fucking snake."

"So? Last laugh's gonna be on you when Mamina "Just keeps going and going"."

Suddenly the group stopped, they had reached their destination, a large pair of elaborate doors. Kaine turned around and looked at Aldritch.

"The Countess and the rest of your comrades are beyond this door."

Aldritch nodded as he turned to face his platoon. "Okay boys, show time. Let's go in there and make our country proud."

He then promptly pivoted back forward and cleared his throat. "Platoon, Atten-hut!"

As one every Marine snapped to the position of attention, they were going to march in and officially greet the countess. Meanwhile, the maids watched from behind with curious eyes and smiles.

Typical Marines.

As Kaine opened both the doors Aldritch promptly issued the order. "Platoon! March!"

Like an assembly line of robots, the Marines fell into step in perfect harmony. Their boots stomping with every choreographed step. Years of drill movement were shown in full effect as the platoon made their way into the large chamber.

 **XXXXXXX**

Itami, RCT 3, Lelei, and Tuka watched with wide eyes as the Marines marched into the center of the chamber. Even Kuwahara was impressed, many years of service to Japan had given him a fine eye for drill as well as professionalism, things the Marines before him had in spades. Meanwhile, Rory merely smiled at the sight before her, enamored with whom she believed to be her knights.

Meanwhile, Myui, Piña, Hamilton, and Bozes all watched with looks mirroring that of Itami's as the Marines finally formed ranks in the center of the room. These warriors before them had the looks of ruffians, misfits given uniforms and told to kill the enemy. Yet for all of they showed at a glance, there was a sort of controlled chaos to them.

As the Marines finally halted in the middle of the room, Aldritch pivoted to the right to face Myui and the others.

"Platoon, right face!"

Once again the Marines moved as one, nothing was out of tune as they promptly snapped to the right.

"Second Tank Battalion Charlie Company Headquarters Platoon! All Present! All accounted for!"

All the Marines' voices joined as one as it filled the chamber. "Good evening ladies! Good evening gentlemen!"

To the Countess, this was all very overwhelming, but to Piña and Bozes, it was an impressive display. Discipline and the movements of a well-trained order of warriors. For all their pride, even they could respect that. Piña slowly stood up from the chair she had been sitting upon and took a few steps forward.

"Adlritch, impressive display, you can tell your men to relax. The Countess merely wishes to see the men who command the iron chariots herself, the men who helped Itami and his soldiers defend this town and its people."

Aldritch nodded as he pivoted to face his platoon. "At ease!"

Slowly all the Marines relaxed and went to merely standing as the order was given, a few sighs of relief coming out. Just because many Marines were good at drill didn't mean they liked it, tankers were certainly no exception to this.

Suddenly the Countess's voice called out to Aldritch as she looked over his men. "Where are the ones who fought the dragon?"

Suddenly every head turned towards the back of the Marines' formation, towards Kincaid, Elton, Benitez, and Wilkes. Aldritch merely nodded towards the crew as they began to file out of the formation and stand in front of the Countess and her Imperial representatives.

"What are your names?"

One by one each of the crew introduced themselves until Kincaid was the last to do so. When they were finally done Myui took a few steps forward to get a good look at them. In their eyes she was just a child, but if there was one thing they had learned about the Special region so far. Nothing was as it seemed.

"Is it true? That you four men and your fellows command the power of the gods? The ability to do what no one has ever done before and bring a flame dragon to its knees?"

As the tank commander, it was Elton's job to speak on behalf of his crew, as he took a step forward he did his best bow and addressed the young ruler.

"Yes ma'am, these three men before you including myself were responsible for driving the dragon off. We're a crew, we fight together. But we weren't the only ones to do so."

Elton looked over towards Itami and RCT3 and nodded. "Ma'am, Itami, and his team assisted us, in fact, were it not for them we probably wouldn't be here."

Itami smiled as he led his team forward to stand beside the tankers. Despite all the confusion going through his mind regarding the campaign, these four men were his friends. If anyone was going to be by his side to the end it'd be them and the rest of his team.

Myui smiled as she went back to her throne, turning to face the group in front of her.

"On behalf of Italica, I thank you for your efforts in our defense, truly both of your armies produce warriors of fine stock. These are trying times for all of us, but with your arrival to our world, I feel as though the road ahead is paved with promise and a chance to learn from one another."

As one, every member of RCT3 and their Marine counterparts snapped to attention their voices coming together as one.

"We're here to serve!"

Myui smiled as she stood in front of her throne. "As I can see, but there's one more matter to attend to."

Both Marine and JSDF soldier looked at each other and back at the countess with confused looks, more speeches?

Myui clapped her hands together and smiled. "Clan Formal always repays it's debts and has always prided itself on its hospitality. Surely you must be famished after all the fighting you've done, won't you join us for dinner?"

Every Marine including Johnson looked at Aldritch with hopeful eyes, it had been a while since they had a decent meal and no one was in the mood for MREs. Even Itami was getting similar looks from his team as well as the three girls.

So far it seemed the general consensus was "Stay or listen to us bitch about it later". Seeing that the odds were against them and being hungry themselves, Aldritch and Itami exchanged defeated looks and smiled as they both looked at Myui.

"We'd be honored to."

Myui smiled and clapped her hands, in moments the maids from before made their way over to the countess and took a bow.

"Yes, mistress?"

"See that the dining room is prepared, these warriors are our guests tonight. Let us show them how our clan conducts itself."

The maids took another bow, "Yes mistress!" and with that, they made their way out of the door, Kaine leading them all the while.

It was going to be an interesting night.

* * *

 **FORMAL ESTATE, DINING ROOM**

 _Alright, how the fuck did this happen?_

Kincaid sighed as he looked across the table, Wilkes, Elton, and Benitez all looked back at him and his misfortune with cheesy smiles. Through some sort of coincidence or a cruel joke played on him, he was sitting between Rory and Kurokawa.

Both of them had brought their own unique brand of nagging to what was supposed to be a relaxing evening. Rory nagged him for the sake of nagging him; asking him non-stop questions, poking at him or otherwise trying to steal his food. Kurokawa seemed hell bent on being his unofficial big sister; making sure he ate everything in front of him and remained polite at all times.

 _I'm about to grab a ticket to the brig._

Trying to keep his mind off things, Kincaid's eyes began to wander over to Aurea. Just like before, she did the same, it was like she could read his mind. His moment of serenity wasn't going to last however, Kurokawa quickly caught on and was once again hot on his heels.

"So, looks like someone made a new friend."

 _Oh for fuck's sake._

"Am I not allowed to make new friends?"

"I didn't mean it like that, but she's been looking over here an awful lot."

"Oh god, maybe she's going to serve me as desert next."

"Real funny."

The hairs on Kincaid's back promptly stood up as Rory whispered. "I'd be glad to eat you, Jasper."

"Go eat Itami."

"Hhmph."

Interesting wound up being a gross understatement as the night progressed. Once everyone was situated, there was no end to the discussions that went on. From the Marines and RCT3 talking about the world they were from, to giving a brief description over the fundamentals of weapons, a lot of learning had been done.

Lelei, in particular, had been the quickest to catch on, something that was slightly unnerving to the Marines. She had been given little information in the way of technology, but she had been already shooting off the right questions after the right answers. Aldritch took notice of this, she was not to be given anything more than the briefest of tours around the tanks.

The allies also learned a thing or two themselves, most notably being the large presence of nonhuman maids at the estate. As it happened, the previous Count had something of a "Thing" for nonhumans, so as a win-win scenario he almost exclusively sought help from nonhuman females. More help for him, a sanctuary for the maids, and extra "scenery" for the estate.

All of the Otaku's present certainly weren't complaining, even Kurata was making waves with the cat maid. Or so he had been hoping.

One of the more prominent conversations had been Myui and the Imperials' questioning of the strange contraptions they had seen before. The young countess herself taking the lead.

"So Aldritch, I must know. I have heard the name Horsemen quite a number of times during my talks with Joyce, I believe he's been referring to you and your warriors. Tell me, why do you have such a peculiar name when your mounts are not flesh and blood?"

Piña looked at Aldritch with a raised eyebrow as she sipped from her glass of wine. All eyes fell on Aldritch as he began to give his history lesson. To those who knew what a tank was, it would be interesting to see how he'd describe it. To those who didn't, it was as if he was recounting an ancient tale."

"Well Ma'am, much like you and your order, in our earliest days we used to fight from horseback as well. As time went on, however, man began to master the art of gunpowder and machinery. One day during a terrible period of time known as World War One, a new invention was made. Much like what you've seen us use, it was designed to break through defenses in order to assist infantry. It's name? The tank. As time went on, new developments began to surface. Soon tanks became faster, stronger, and designed with multiple roles in mind. What you've seen now is the latest in those developments, the M1A1 Abrams. In keeping with that history, we've adopted that mindset that we're knights, fighting from our mounts. Using our speed and force to close with and destroy the enemy."

"Em one ay one Aybrams..."

"Yes...that's the name of our tanks."

"Tanks?"

"Yes ma'am, though I can see why you'd call em iron chariots. Just so happens ours is the meanest one out there too."

A series of chuckles came from some of the tankers, Aldritch made them sound a lot more epic than they really were. As for their tanks being the meanest out there, that was a hot source of debate. The Marines were what made the tanks the meanest out there.

Piña and Bozes looked at each other with curious looks, to think that these men were the descendants of knights. It must have been quite the journey to get to where they were now. Bozes, in particular, felt ashamed for her earlier transgressions, there was an order to things among knights. Respect and honor being chief among those, the same ones she had slandered with her aggressive behavior.

Bozes looked across at Elton, a look of shame upon her face.

"Elton was it? I apologize for our behavior before, you must understand that we had no idea who you were. Italica and the Princess were our top concerns."

Elton had been busy chewing away at some sort of roast as he heard the apology, swallowing his mouthful he dabbed at his mouth with a napkin.

"Eh, no harm no foul. I probably would've done the same."

 _Not really, I would've seen the tank and ran my happy ass in the other direction._

That was it? That simple? Many others would have asked for compensation for the misbehavior, but this man had brushed it aside like a fleeting memory. Suddenly Piña looked at Aldritch with a look of concern, building off what Bozes had said.

"All the same, I would like to accompany you to Alnus tomorrow, with Bozes of course. We wish to have an audience with your leadership to show them we have only the best of intentions."

 _I need to see it, I need to tell father._

Aldritch turned to face Itami and started to whisper. "What're you thinking?"

"What am I thinking?"

"Yeah, I mean they're with the Empire. Same assholes who started this conflict, Italica and Clan Formal are independent for the most part, so us being here is one thing. Letting Imperials onto our base though? That's a call I can't make alone here Youji."

"I don't see the harm in it, to be honest, they saw what we're capable of. I think the Princess see's a battle here she can't win. My guess? She wants what's best for her people, lest they get wiped out."

Aldritch glanced at the two Imperials, they sat there with expectant looks waiting for an asnwer. He had to admit, Itami and him had to look pretty silly whispering. Finally accepting the wisdom in Itami's words, Aldritch sighed.

"Ever the humanitarian huh? Alright, once we're done here I'll bring it up with my superiors."

He then turned to face the two Imperials. "Yeah that can be arranged. I'll let Major Joyce know what the plan is."

As if on queue, one of the doors leading to the dining room opened up and in walked Joyce. He glanced around the room until he found Aldritch.

"My apologies ladies and gentlemen, lieutenant Aldritch can you come with me real quick?"

As Aldritch excused himself, Johnson did the same and followed him out. Being the acting platoon sergeant he had every right to know what was going on. As the doors closed silence fell over the room, the only sounds coming from the occasional use of silverware.

Some of the tankers looked around, muttering among themselves all the while. This went on for a while until finally the door opened up and with it entered Aldritch and Johnson. Aldritch approached Itami and muttered a few things before looking at Myui and the Imperials.

"Well Piña, Bozes? You're cleared to come with us tomorrow morning back to Alnus."

As the pair nodded and voiced their thanks, Aldritch turned to face his platoon.

"However this is where we have to go our separate ways for the evening, we have tanks that need to be looked over and slept on."

One by one and with some groans each of the Marines got up, slung their carbines and grabbed their boonie covers. As one, they all faced the countess and the others, "Thank you for having us tonight."

As Myui nodded in response, the Marines began to file out the doors. A few sad goodbyes and hopeful promises of their return were made in silence to the maids as they passed. As Kincaid made his way to the door, he felt Aurea's familiar hand touch his.

"I thought you said we'd get to talk again."

Kincaid sighed, he had made a big mistake, he made a promise while on the Corp's time schedule. As the crowd continued to file out he tried to sneak in one last word with her, holding her hand all the while. He had just barely met this girl, he hardly knew anything about her and here he was being all sentimental.

Wasn't the first time he'd done something like this.

"I know, I apologize, but this isn't goodbye. Think of it as more of a temporary farewell, I'm sure we'll be back here soon. Hey, who knows? Maybe they'll move our platoon here, then we can talk more and get to know one another."

Aurea's snakes began to coil around Kincaid's hand as time began to slow down again, she looked at him with hopeful eyes.

"I will remain hopeful for that day Jasper Kincaid. Do come back."

"Oh wait."

Kincaid took his phone out and started it, once it booted up he flipped it around. "Do you uh mind taking a picture with me? We have to be quick though or I'll get in trouble."

Aurea cocked her head to the side, how was he going to paint something of both of them on such short notice? In the end, she merely nodded, she had never seen something so strange looking before. Kincaid flipped to the front camera and slowly got them both in the screen.

"Is that a tiny mirror?"

"Yeah something like that."

Kincaid promptly snapped the photo and put his phone back into his cargo pocket. "Okay I gotta go, I'll see you soon Aurea."

And with that he was gone, Aurea staring after him all the while. She wasn't alone, across the room Kurokawa had seen everything that had just happened. When the time came she'd have a word with Kincaid, Rory on the other hand simply giggled.

She loved disorder.

* * *

 **1000 HOURS, EASTERN COURTYARD**

They really didn't have to leave early, it was just another excuse for Aldritch to pass word and for accountability to be done.

Typical Marines.

However, there had been some information shared. Most notably being the fact that the Four Horsemen would likely be taking residence at the new FOB to be established near Italica. This was more or less because a company from First Tank Battalion was indeed on the way with the MEB.

Having East and West Coast tankers at the same base was just asking for trouble. It wasn't so much that they hated each other, but that there was always a rivalry. Everyone thought their unit was the best, in fact, this same mentality could be same about any East and West coast based unit.

Typical Marines.

The final piece of word wasn't for the platoon, but for the crew of Here We Go Again. As it so happened, they wouldn't have to worry about the attire they'd be wearing for their return to Earth and the Diet. Their families had already been informed and had been told to send appropriate civilian attire. Meanwhile, their dress blues had already been shipped, sized according to their measurements on file, and all appropriate ribbons and medals mounted.

Once the word had been passed, the tankers were given their SP for tomorrow morning, the general plan of the day, and were sent back to their tanks to finally relax.

Kincaid had been on top of the turret staring at the photo of him and Aurea when he heard a familiar voice call out to him through the darkness, Itami's.

"Hey, Kincaid? You there?"

A series of groans emitted as tired tankers lazily aimed flashlights towards Kincaid's tank. Seeing Itami's shape growing closer in the darkness, Kincaid turned his phone off and made his way down the front of the turret, disregarding the groans of his sleeping crew.

"Dog...ya'll can play Yu-gi-oh tomorrow."

"Hey watch where you're fucking stepping _Pendejo_."

As he made his way down the front slope, Kincaid approached Itami. "What's up sir?"

"Can we go for a walk?"

Kincaid shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. "Uh, yeah. Sure."

As the pair made their way to the top of one of the walls, Itami turned and faced Kincaid a look of concern on his face being revealed by the moonlight.

"Look, Jasper, you can call me Youji alright? We've been working together for a while, share the same interests, you can be informal with me. Cause right now this is an informal discussion."

"Youji? I thought Itami was your first name."

"Nope."

"Well fuck me. Looks like I still got a lot to learn."

Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and fished out a pack of smokes, passing one to Itami as he went to lean against one of the columns atop the wall. After he lighted both of their cigarettes, he folded his arms.

"Alright _**Youji,**_ I'm all ears."

Itami went to lean against one of the other columns as he took a drag. "Thanks, so look, earlier? I kinda blew up on Major Joyce, said some things about you guys trying to take the land here and what not."

"Yeesh, talk about winning minds. Alright, go on."

"Look I'm just confused right now okay? Look, Jasper, I want to help these people, I want to make this world a better place, to do things right. This is my first deployment, my first taste of action, and my mind's just a mess."

"And you think you're going to repeat the same mistakes we made in Iraq and Afghanistan?"

"Yeah, I do. Look, It's not that I don't enjoy you guys being here, working with you all has been a learning experience for both me and the team. It's just tha-"

Kincaid put a hand up as he took another drag, turning around to look out over the wall and at the lands beyond.

"Itami, whether you like it or not, Japan is the talk of the town right now. For the first time in years, you guys are actually at "War", if you could call it that. Your leadership, not you, your leadership pretty much declared these lands as an extension of your own. Whether or not that's the right call is anyone's guess, you were attacked, you had every right to defend yourself."

He took another drag and turned to face Itami, a look of exhaustion on his face. "You're under the microscope right now, and when you're under that microscope you tend to make mistakes. That or people will scrutinize you more. Either way, you want to know something?"

Itami let out a long cloud of smoke. "What?"

"That's not for you to worry about, or me, or anyone operating in the field. You save that shit for politicians and people calling the shots. As for us? We came to help you guys, our Embassy, and your people were under attack, so we did what we thought was right. As for coming through the gate, you guys made that call not us. We're here for you, should you guys up and decide to tell us to fuck off and leave? Well, we'll leave, just know that when a situation comes up and you're not ready for it? You won't have any reason to come crying to anyone."

"I just want to do what's right.."

"And you are! Look at the refugees, the girls, how they look up to us, how they look up to you. Your team is still alive and so far no one's blaming you for anything. Officer or not, you're still a troop on the front lines. When you put the uniform on? All those politics and crap? Fuck that shit, there's you, your guys, and the enemy. You make the decisions on the engagement level, no one's telling you to shoot civilians or kick people off their land. In fact, wherever you got the idea we were taking land here is bullshit anyways! We didn't do it in Iraq, we didn't do it in Afghanistan, gas prices haven't gone down that much."

 _You on the other hand...I can't answer for your country's goals here, but we won't talk about that._

Itami took another drag as he let Kincaid continue.

"You worried about what people think? Fuck em, tell em to put the goddamn uniform on and try this shit. They won't do it? Okay then, they should do something productive, not sit around and bitch. Our job is to follow orders and make sure our brothers and sisters come back home safe, that's it Itami. You're out here on the verge of one of the greatest scientific discoveries, be proud of that. My first deployment brought nothing but questions and rolled eyes from civilians."

Having finished his rant, Kincaid took one last drag and tossed his cigarette butt over the side of the wall. For a few moments both men stood there in silence until finally Kincaid added one last thing in.

"If something goes wrong, we'll be here right with you, my crew will be here right with you. We're in this storm together man, for better or for worse."

Itami tossed his butt off the side and sighed as he held his hips. "Thanks Jasper, I just wanted to hear it from someone who wasn't a high rank you know? Someone who's always been at the front, you're right I have been overreacting. I'm sorry for making such a broad statement."

"Don't worry about it, you're not the first to have said some shit like that. Won't be the last, you're a good man Youji. Hold onto that."

Kincaid paused as he lit another cigarette, once he had taken a drag and let out a long cloud of smoke, he continued.

"Look...someone is going to fuck up. It's going to happen, so you might as well brace yourself for it. It's how you're gonna deal with it after, that's the important part."

"You think so?"

"I _**know**_ so, you think we didn't have people make bad calls in Afghanistan? All you can do is keep on keeping on, take care of yourself and take care of your guys. People are going to judge us anyways, always have, always will."

Silence reigned supreme once more as both men looked out over the side of the wall.

"So...the Medusa huh?"

Kincaid raised an eyebrow."What about her?"

Itami chuckled. "I saw you looking at her all goo goo eyed. I'm no Casanova, but that display was clear as day."

Kincaid shrugged before leaning against a nearby pillar. "Well I mean, she's alright on the eyes."

"'Alright on the eyes'? Someone's been watching too much Monster Musume." Itami rolled his eyes. "I've been down that road before."

"The hell's that got to do with anything?" Kincaid frowned. "So what if she's got snakes for hair, I mean..."

The Marine paused as he tried to explain himself, make it seem like his attraction wasn't completely alien. "I wasn't the only one!"

Itami shook his head and sighed. "Yeah, you let me know when snakes for hair is as passable as a cat girl or even a girl with rabbit ears."

"Blow me, I didn't see you making any moves in there." Kincaid pointed an accusatory finger at the Japanese officer. "Even Kurata had the balls to make conversation."

Itami shrugged. "Ah, every dog has his day. Besides I'm an officer, I have to be on my best behavior."

"So was I."

"Sure, that's why Kurokawa was eyeing you with the look of the devil? You know she's coming with us back to Japan."

Kincaid groaned. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Well I figured, well." Itami rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, I see you two around each other a lot. It doesn't really bother me any, but uh."

The Marine shook his head and sighed. "Respectfully? Just drop it, she's a good woman. Hell, I think she's cute, but I'm not an idiot. This isn't the place for that sort of shit you know? We're just friends."

 _That's a lie, all the men here are jumping for a piece of something._

"But it's the place to try and stick your snake in a snake?"

"For fuck's sake."

Itami threw his hands up. "Hey, I don't judge. Guys with hobbies like us are long past that. I'm just saying Jasper."

"Noted."

The pair went silent for a few moments before Kincaid turned to face Itami. "Look, I gotta get some sleep. Long day tomorrow, greener pastures and all that shit."

"Let's hope."

As the two men went their separate ways Itami called out to Kincaid one last time. "Hey Jasper? You're a good man too, I hope you know that. I'm just giving you crap, I know a good person when i see one."

Kincaid gave Itami a thumbs up as he continued to walk. "Yeah well I try."

With that, Kincaid took his leave and made his way back to the rock hard bed that was his tank. As he went back to lay down the feeling of his interaction with Aurea from before began to creep back onto him.

 _Sometimes I need to try harder..._

* * *

 **Before I get asked.  
**

 **Get Money Dolphins was some bullshit we made up while we were at Myrtle Beach, I honestly can't say I remember what brought it up exactly(I'm pretty sure we were all drunk off our asses). But I know we started using it _a lot_ , like we'd hype the dumbest things with it for no reason.**


	17. Now About Those Greener Pastures

**"Hold up wait a minute, ya'll thought I was finished?!"**

 **It's been a while hasn't it? A month give or take? I confess, my new life with college has been a busy one so far. That and going back to edit the god awful mistakes I made in older chapters. Such as the timeline, so when you see that a month has passed, just know that was done based off research.  
**

 **Anyways I've finally established a good routine, so you know what that means?**

 **Back in the saddle, weekly updates. That been said? Thanks for your patience and know that as my way of apologizing to all of you who have been patiently waiting?**

 **Work has already started on sixteen, I mean...I still have a lot of plot to cover still. As ever I'll do my best to answer your reviews personally.**

 ***Update*-We have a forum up "Tales From The Special Region Troops". We're looking to start a very structured RP soon too, so stop on by!**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Now About Those Greener Pastures...  
**

" _There are only two kinds of people that understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second-hand opinion._ "

Gen. William Thornson, U.S. Army

 **ONE MONTH SINCE INITIAL INCURSION 0700 HOURS ITALICA, EASTERN COURTYARD, SPECIAL REGION**

"Oh Jasper-kuuuun, rise and shine."

"No...five more minutes.."

"Bitch! Fuck your five minutes!"

Kincaid's side exploded in pain as he felt a boot kick him awake. Jolting upright, he saw Wilkes towering over him with his trademark grin. Kincaid calmly put his glasses on and yawned as he fumbled for his cigarettes, he had slept the entire night sprawled out on the front slope and without a sleeping bag.

Although tanks had their comfortable spots, having to operate all night during the siege and being up all day may have contributed to his sleeping arrangements.

Kincaid slowly took a drag as he looked at Wilkes with a raised eyebrow, "What? No good morning kiss?"

"The hell? How'd you turn gay overnight?"

"I didn't, but obviously you did if you're trying to whisper sweet nothings to me."

"Fine then, next time I'll just skip to beating your ass."

Kincaid chuckled as he slowly stood up and stretched, his cigarette hanging loosely from his mouth.

"Not even a hug?"

"Fuck no."

"Aww cmon don't make me force one outta you."

Kincaid promptly put Wilkes into a headlock, chuckling all the while. For all the homosexual jokes Wilkes liked to make back at the barracks, he absolutely hated it when the tables were turned. Wilkes's agitation was very obvious as he struggled, were he prepared for this he would've beaten Kincaid back easily.

But he wasn't.

"Yo, bruh quit! Shit ain't funny!"

"Oh? Shit was certainly funny back at the barracks!"

Before the two could struggle any further Elton's voice came down from the top of the turret. "Yo we having a hug out? Lemme get in on this!"

Soon Wilkes was wrapped up tightly by both Elton and Kincaid, struggling all the while. Soon even Benitez joined in, a gaggle of Marines on the front slope laughing at Wilkes's expense. Such was the way of things in the Corps, hell the military in general.

It had always been a running rumor that military men would often resort to "extreme methods" when away from female attention for long periods of time. A rumor that eventually turned into a well-played joke, most Marines were "straight as a door edge", but even still "Grab assery" was a fun pastime.

Especially if you were homophobic like Wilkes, so it was no surprise that the other tankers merely laughed as the scene continued to play out.

"Damn girl you thick as hell!"

"Ey nina, Como Estas?!"

"Yo, I'm beating all of your asses when we get back!"

But of course, the fun was once again cut short. Cut short by someone who the tankers of _Here We Go Again_ were anything but thrilled to have around.

As the laughing continued another pair of arms joined in and tried to wrap itself around them, smaller arms belonging to a girl.

Rory.

"Dreams really do come true! My riders indulge themselves with each other even in broad daylight!"

Soon the laughter was replaced with sounds of panic, Rory's giggling, and the crew's distress as they tried to untangle themselves. By now what was supposed to be just some crew fun had turned into a full-blown spectacle in the courtyard.

This went on for a few moments until Aldritch finally came yelling; "Animals", "Clowns", and "You should know better!" were chief among the responses he had.

Once the gaggle was broken up and a reluctant Rory sent on her way, things went back to normal and the morning proceeded as planned. Comm checks were carried out, weapons ensured to be in good working order, the order of march given, and the general plan for when they returned to Alnus given.

The tankers were ready, they just had to wait for the better part of an hour and a half for RCT3 and the others. Unlike the tankers, they got a comfy night's rest at the Formal estate so it was no surprise that their arrival was met with rolled eyes and muttered expletives.

They weren't alone, however, clan Formal's maids had come to see both them and the tankers off, to see the tanks with their own eyes. To say they were impressed was an understatement, they gazed with wide eyes and open mouths at the sight in front of them. These large steel beasts were what the Marines rode upon? The source of the earth-shaking thuds and roars they had heard the night of the siege?

Falling behind the maids were Bozes and Piña, their usual armor discarded in exchange for elaborate robes fit for a diplomatic meeting. As the two royals made their way forth, the tankers already knew what was going to come next. The royals were going to ask to ride atop one of the tanks, and if it was going to be anyone's tank? It'd be Aldritch's.

Sure enough, the pair made their way to the front slope of Boss Hoss, much to Aldritch's very visible annoyance. After some conversation and a few rolled eyes from the tank officer, the other tankers began to chuckle as their XO made his way down the front slope and extended his hands to the two royals.

Jackpot.

A series of excited hollers went out as the tankers clapped their hands, to them Aldritch had become the man of the hour with that display.

"Get some sir!"

"Oorah!"

"Playa, playa!"

Of course, one dagger-like glance from Aldritch quickly put the cheers to rest, not that the tankers minded, there were plenty of other things to look at.

Like, maids.

Goofy laughter and brave waves were issued forth as the tankers tried to get the maids' attention. Amidst all of it, Kincaid and Benitez were once again in their own worlds. The two females who had caught their attention the night prior just across the courtyard. Whilst Benitez had been his usual goofy self, Kincaid looked more like he wasn't all there.

In truth he wasn't, about the only thing moving were the thoughts going through his mind, his eyes once again drawn into Aurea's.

For as right as it felt, it also unnerved him a little bit. He'd met plenty of women, played the dating game more times than he could count, but never had he been hooked so quick before. It was like she had cast some sort of spell over him, hell for all he knew that might've been exactly what she was doing.

His train of thought and whatever spell he was under were promptly broken as Elton's hand gave his shoulder a squeeze.

"Man, I gotta say. Of all the weirdos you've gone for, snake girl over there takes the prize."

Removing his gaze from Aurea, Kincaid responded to Elton, shaking his head like as if a bucket of cold water was dumped on him.

"Well shit, I mean why not dude? She seems like alright people."

"Yeah until you find out she's actually a dude. Plot twist!"

"Har fucking har. "

Elton folded his arms and rolled his eyes, "Jesus bro, just be careful with that shit alright? I'm not trying to get our shit pushed in because you wanted to go charming snakes with _**your**_ snake."

Kincaid lit another cigarette, he let out a long cloud of smoke as he raised an eyebrow.

"Relax, I just want to get to know her that's all. Fuck, I don't even know how old she is."

"Did you ask?"

"No, the hell was I supposed to say? Hi I'm Kincaid, how old are you? That's just fucking creepy."

"Right, because _**she**_ isn't creepy? Seriously man, your tastes fucking mystify me."

"It's not about that, something just seems different about her."

Elton put on an expression of disbelief, "No shit? Maybe it's because she isn't human? Look man like I said, just be careful."

"Careful is what I do best."

"Right because that time with the stripper.."

Kincaid promptly cut him off, "Let's not go there."

"Drunk in loooove."

"Damnit man..chill."

Elton laughed and motioned back towards the top of the tank, "Heh, Look go ahead and mount up, we're Audi 3,000 bro. You know how much XO loves his timelines."

Kincaid chuckled as he made his way up the front slope and to the top of the turret, picking up his plate carrier and donning it. "Yeah, yeah I do."

He stood there for a few moments giving the outside world one last look before he began to ease himself down into his armored home's hatch.

As his muscles and bones ached from years of armored service he cast one last glance over at Aurea. He wasn't sure what the future held, or whether or not she was truly going to be part of it, but he did know one thing as he silently mouthed a few words to her.

"I'll come back."

She must have understood him because not even after he had finished mouthing the last words, she held her hands to her chest and smiled. Then, with one last wave Kincaid clambered down into the turret.

 _God, I'm such a sap._

One by one each of the tank crews and the mechanics mounted up, comm checks were carried out and weapons were readied. Not long after, the sounds of turbine engines whining to life soon filled the air as the tanks rose from their slumber. Like waking giants they slowly began to lumber out of the courtyard, the crews atop giving the maids and the gathering Italica residents some final waves before they gunned it out into the countryside with RCT3's trucks following close behind.

* * *

 _En route to Alnus  
_

Things had been quiet the first couple minutes into the trip. Quiet but not without its fair share of amusing sights, the royals had insisted on getting the same experience as the crews themselves. By this they meant being in the same hatches and seeing what the tankers saw, not falling off the sides was also a big consideration.

So in the end, an amused Aldritch and Moores had to put up with having someone else standing directly in front of them and holding onto anything they could for dear life. In truth sure the royals got the same experience, but they weren't exactly prepared for the experience in the first place. For something so big to move so fast, it was baffling, to say the least.

Meanwhile, the crew of _Here We Go Again_ fell back into its usual banter. Long road marches tended to have that effect and they still had quite the trip ahead. While the rest of the crew conversed about their subsequent return to Earth and all the perks it could bring, Kincaid remained silent. The events prior to now were still playing in his mind and there was a lot of them.

Motivation to serve his country or not, Kincaid's time living abroad had made him privy to the outside world. He wondered what people would think of his country, of him. He wanted to believe that they were still a force for good in the world, but how would the gate influence that? Would people look at him and his brothers as the hand of a scheming world power? Or would they be looked at as an ally coming to the aid of another? So much back and forth.

Then there was his EAS, fantasy world or not he was here in the Special Region to stay for the foreseeable future. Did he really want to be here? Was Aurea and all the other strange things and complete lack of opposition really worth it? Could this even really be considered a deployment?

Kincaid shook his head and smacked the front of his comm helmet. He was a tanker, a Marine, politics and controversies weren't part of his M.O..

Then again neither were Diets.

Unbeknownst to everyone returning to Alnus, Joyce had long sent the word back to base regarding the royals' visit the night prior. So, it had been decided by both Hazama and Kane that they'd lay out a "Welcome fit for royalty from the enemy."

So when the two Huey Venoms came flying in out of nowhere and took up flight patterns on either side of the convoy, nobody had any idea what was going on. However, upon closer inspection they were revealed to be the very same psyops choppers that had been present at Italica.

 _Wagner_ and _Beethoven_.

That was when everything began to fall into place. The choppers were there to accompany the convoy back to Alnus, and once their song started playing the mood they were trying to set was very clear as well.

* * *

 **Wagner and Beethovens's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 19: Tears for Fears "Everybody Wants To Rule The World"  
**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

" _Welcome to your life_

 _There's no turning back_

 _Even while we sleep_

 _We will find you."_

As the lyrics began to take hold, everyone in the convoy save for the Marines sat there dumbfounded. To the royals and the three girls, it was a strange song that they couldn't understand. To the members of RCT3 and Itami, in particular, it was a very clear message.

Everybody wants to rule the world, or rather wants to have a piece of it.

As the tankers began to laugh and clap to the music playing, Itami sat there silent. He listened to the lyrics as they continued.

" _There's a room where the light won't find you_

 _Holding hands while the walls come tumbling down_

 _When they do I'll be right behind you."_

For as blunt as the song was, Itami began to understand why the choppers were playing it. For better or worse, they were here in this new world. They had invaded it and now they were occupying it, spreading their influence farther and farther. But no matter what, they were going to do it together.

 _Have I been worried for nothing_?

To Piña and Bozes, the ride had been intimidating enough, but now the tankers were acting like children? Dancing to a song coming from the same flying contraptions that were present at Italica? To say they were confused was an understatement, scared out of their minds was the more applicable term here.

To make matters worse, the speed of the tanks had increased, the wailing of their engines matching that speed. The royals hung onto a laughing Aldritch and Moores for dear life as they screamed out in terror, but the true shock and awe was just ahead.

As the convoy made its way to sea of destroyed earth, the two royals cast their gaze forward. The second half of their "Red carpet" was beginning to be laid out right in front of them.

Alnus, or rather what they assumed to be Alnus.

They saw it all; gunships on flight patrols, Type 74 tanks performing maneuver drills with LAV-25's, infantry established at predetermined checkpoints. Everywhere the pair looked looked they saw superiority, the superiority of a far more advanced enemy. One they hoped to establish peace with.

It was here that they knew that the Empire had stepped on a Griffon's tail. Now that Griffon was here and it was here to stay. Unlike the song, this sight gave a very clear message to the royals.

"Cooperate with us, or continue to learn the hard way."

 _"All for freedom and for pleasure_

 _Nothing ever lasts forever_

 _Everybody wants to rule the world."_

* * *

 **0900 HOURS, CAMP ALNUS**

While the other tanks lumbered off to go about their day, the fairly shook up Piña and Bozes dismounted from Boss Hoss, joining up with the rest of Recon Three. After a few twists and turns, the Japanese trucks finally stopped in front of an imposing, yet fairly simplistic looking building, the main allied operations headquarters.

Standing by the door, two soldiers were waiting for them, their uniforms slightly shinier than the average trooper. Flanking them, two armed men stood guard, topping off the welcoming committee.

One hell of a red carpet.

As the trucks squeaked to a halt, the Marines approached the back of Itami's vehicle and opened the armored doors. A young, lively looking officer assisted the royals in exiting, giving them a friendly, yet stern smile.

"Princess Piña Co Lada? Bozes Co Palesti?" he asked, trying his best at the local language. "I'm Lieutenant Jankowski. Colonel Kane and Lieutenant General Hazama are waiting for you inside. If you'll please follow me."

The royals exchanged nervous glances and looked back at Itami. They were met with a nervous smile and a shrug, and both sighed in defeat.

"Very well, Lootenant Jankowski, lead on."

Before the pair could follow the Marines, Lelei walked up to the Lieutenant and pulled from his sleeve. With her usual, expressionless face, she stared at the royals for a moment, then back up to him with unblinking eyes.

After a few seconds, she spoke up. "It would be wise if I accompanied you. Their leaders might not be as skilled with our language."

Jankowski bit the inside of his lip, slightly weirded out by her strange antics. He looked at his fellow Marines and JSDF, who just shrugged. His job was to just get Piña and Bozes to the meeting room, nobody said anything about translators. Then again, creepy blue girl made a good point, and good translation would make for a good first impression.

And Marines always pride themselves on first impressions.

"No complaints from us, ma'am."

With the arrangements in place and a familiar face with them, the royals felt more at ease. Nodding at Jankowski they then began to follow the Marines, Lelei following close behind them.

The royals gulped as they went inside the building, the outside had already baffled them. It wasn't made of brick or wood, but rather some sort of stone. Then, of course, there was the interior, nothing at all like the kinds of structures they were used to.

There wasn't a single torch to be seen, but rather, an intriguingly clear white glow emanated from the ceiling itself. If that wasn't enough, the very walls themselves were made of a material they had never seen before. As their trip through the operations building continued, the royals noticed the wandering eyes of many of the allied troops peering out from behind office walls or around corners.

Unnerving, to say the least, but in a way, they were strangers here just as much as the troops were in this world.

Eventually, the mismatched group finally arrived at a pair of double doors at the end of a long hallway. Jankowski promptly turned around and nodded to his team, on cue they immediately took up positions on either side of the royals and Lelei.

It was meant to be professional, but instead, it wound up making Piña and Bozes almost jump through the ceiling. Jankowski suppressed the urge to laugh as he shook his head.

"Right through these doors. When you're done we'll escort you to your quarters."

Piña nodded and sighed as she slowly opened the double doors.

 _For my people._

As she lead Bozes and Lelei inside, the first thing she noticed was the two men in strange attire standing at the end of a small wooden table. One was obviously Itami's superior, the style of his outfit was the same green that adorned Itami and his men. However unlike Itami, he was much older, in fact, Piña deduced he was about the same age as Gray. There was a sort of sagely wisdom about him, his eyes giving off an aura of natural superiority.

No doubt this was Hazama, which would naturally leave the other man as Kane. Unlike Hazama however, he brought a much different set of attire and had a much different aura about him.

The first thing that had caught both the royals' and even Lelei's attention was the uniform he wore. Unlike Hazama's it was black with white pants. Evenly spaced gold buttons on its front shone brightly as they reflected the room's natural light. Meanwhile, strange ribbons and medals adorned his chest, no doubt these were honor markings of past battles and heroic deeds. Unlike Hazama's uniform, Kane had a great deal more of these markings. Yet, all the same, he was much younger. Confusing, usually it was the older warriors who were more decorated. Piña made a mental note to ask Aldritch about it later.

Making their way over to the table and standing across from the two officers, the royals waited until Lelei made the proper introductions, gesturing to each of the men as she introduced them.

"This is Lieutenant General Hazama of the Japanae Self-Defense Forces and Colonel Kane of The United States Marine Corps."

As Lelei turned to the officers and began to blather off in a different language, Piña took a moment to take in the scene. This girl had been with these two armies for a short while and already she was speaking to them flawlessly, both living among and working beside them. It was a promising sign, long before Italica two worlds were coexisting. Peace couldn't be that far behind could it?

Before the thought could linger in Piña's mind for much longer, Lelei was already turning to face her and Bozes.

"They say they are honored to have you here and that they regret the loss of life that occurred at Italica."

Piña nodded as she went for her response, "Tell them that the honor is mutual and that we respect their grievances for those we lost."

Before Lelei could translate Piña stopped her, "Tell them had their men not shown up in the first place we wouldn't be having this conversation. Tell them that we have never observed finer warriors before."

 _Were it up to me I would've knighted every one of your tankers, Kane_.

Lelei nodded as she went to translate, both Piña and Bozes waited for the response with bated breath. So far neither the JSDF nor the Marines showed any signs of seeking revenge for the mishap with the knights, but old habits die hard and Piña knew better than to rest easy just yet.

The siege had a profound effect on her, she'd witnessed first hand the fate both the armies sent forth through the gate and to Alnus had met. There was nothing the Empire could do against such power, or against the convictions of the men who wielded it. It terrified her and naturally as Imperial royalty she feared for herself and her people.

Once again Piña's thought was cut short as Lelei's monotone voice came back with the latest translated message.

"They humbly accept your praise. They ask what brings you here though? Why Imperial royalty would come all this way to a place they knew nothing about?"

Piña exchanged a worried glance with Bozes before sighing, now the truth came out.

"We wish to apologize for the event that transpired regarding my subordinate Bozes here and her fellow Knights. We knew that your men hailed from Alnus, we wished to speak face to face with their leaders. For you to know we are sincere."

Once again Lelei nodded as she went to translate, to Piña it felt like she was watching some sort of stone Golem mindlessly carrying out a task. This time, Kane had laughed and nodded at Bozes in particular, the royal merely giving a nervous smile in response.

Now it was time for Lelei's response, the one the royals were most nervous for.

"Kane says he commends Bozes's quick thinking. As Marines, they train to be decisive both on and off the battlefield. Were he in your shoes he would have done the same. In fact, both Kane and Hazama commend you for handling the situation the way you are right now. They know leaders from their world would have made the wrong decision and not acted upon it. Both the Japanese and Marines are trained only to open fire when absolutely necessary, they call it escalation of force. Bozes didn't harm anyone, therefore, no harm was brought to her or the knights. They hope to leave this event in the past and look forward from here on."

Both royals almost jumped from their seats, being commended and forgiven at the same time? Truly this was a day of days, Piña's heart almost jumped out of chest as she went to respond to Lelei.

"This is wonderful news, so the treaty is still in place then? All is fine?"

Translation once more, this time, both officers looked at Bozes directly. In truth that had unnerved her, with but a word these men could completely wipe out everything around Alnus. That was something that demanded the utmost in respect and care.

"They say only if there isn't anything that needs to be adjusted.."

Before Lelei could finish Piña gave a nervous smile. "No, that won't be necessary!"

The young sorceress nodded and returned to translating once more. Once she finished conversing with the two officers she returned her gaze to Piña once more.

"Then all is fine, they apologize but they have things to attend to. They hope you enjoy your stay and that you find the facilities here accommodating."

Although their hearts were at ease, the two royals were far from relaxed. All of this had felt too good to be true, there was no way such a transgression could be swept away so easily. It was unheard of in their world, but in the end, the pair had no choice but to sigh and nod their heads.

So with that, the discussions came to a close and the royals left with Lelei leaving the two officers alone for a while.

Alone to discuss what had just happened.

"Well, that went a lot better than I expected."

"Sir?"

"Joseph?"

"Sorry, old habits die hard. It went well Koichiro."

Hazama nodded with an affirming grunt before continuing.

"Good thing Joyce contacted us when he did. No doubt we laid out one of hell of a red carpet for them."

"Yeah, she still looked pretty shook up. Would've been wise if he had mentioned she was practically a teenager. That's a hell of a lot for a leader to digest at such an age."

Hazama chuckled at this remark, Kane must've not gotten the word about who was in charge of Italica. Young and inexperienced leaders seemed to be a Special Region specialty.

"No arguments there, but she's gonna have a hell of a lot more on her plate once she goes through that gate."

Kane coughed as his eyes went wide for a moment, he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"She is? Do you think that's a good idea? You saw the shock on her face just now, imagine what'll happen if she goes to our world? Tokyo is hardly an easy transition."

Hazama sighed as he slowly stood up, making his way over towards one of the windows. As if on cue Kane did the same, standing beside the old general.

"Joseph, whether we like it or not our worlds are colliding more and more every day. Pretty soon it won't be from firepower being directed at them either. Rather, I'd hope it doesn't keep coming to that. I can see the promise in her eyes, something tells me she wants an end to this conflict just as much as we do. She wants to understand us and bring our people closer, so what better way to do that than with one bold step?"

Kane nodded without removing his gaze from the outside.

"Well, I can certainly see the logic in that. As for this conflict, well I won't argue against wanting to see the end to this either. However long that might be, either way, what exactly will she be doing there? Do you want her to speak before the Diet?"

Hazama chuckled as he put his hands behind his back, turning to face the younger Marine officer.

"God no, the press and the politicians would tear her a new one. No, I plan on sending a call up to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Politics isn't my thing and I doubt it's yours either, they'll know what to do."

"No argument there."

Kane looked at his watch and sighed, "Well I've got some things to attend to. This was an interesting meeting, not like meeting tribal leaders in Afghan."

As Kane made his way to the doors, Hazama stopped him.

"How did those usually go?"

Without turning his head, Kane answered the question. "Well we'd make some sort of agreement, weeks would go by without incident. Next thing you know, we're fighting their guys again."

Hazama folded his arms as a frown began to grow on his face. "Do you think the Empire will do the same?"

Now Kane had turned around to face Hazama, his eyebrow raised. "For their sake? I'd hope not, Augustine will drop the hammer ten fold if they do."

"Like I'd allow that."

"Of course, I'm just speaking hypothetically here."

Hazama merely shrugged and went back to looking back out the window. Kane took this as his cue to leave, but once again Hazama had a few last words to get in.

"Oh and Joseph?"

"Yes?"

"Interesting choice in uniform, I hope you weren't trying to upstage me."

Kane looked over his shoulder and gave a small smile. "Came in just this morning, as for upstaging you? Of course not, but those in places higher than myself thought it'd be best if I put on 'something flashy'."

Hazama raised an eyebrow. "'Something flashy?'"

"Yes apparently dress blues speak louder than service alphas." The colonel chuckled. "Or so my organization likes to think, believe me I would've been just fine in my alphas."

 _Still have more awards than you._

Hazama shook his head with a sigh."Oh I've heard the rumors Joseph, I don't think there's anyone who hasn't by this point. Well I won't keep you, off you go."

Kane nodded and with that he made his way out of the conference room. A smirk forming on his face.

Upstaging the Japanese had been command's goal the entire time. They **_were_** Marines after all, in service to a nation that prided itself on having the world's strongest military.

If the shoe fits, wear it.

* * *

The royals and Lelei had just made it outside the building with their Marine entourage when they were greeted by a familiar face.

Aldritch garbed in his usual FROG suit and eight-point cover. His carbine was slung behind his back, his Sig strapped snug against his thigh.

The young tank officer nodded at Jankowski as a smirk grew on his face, "I got it from here guys, they know me. Why don't you all go off enjoy the rest of your day?"

The men exchanged hopeful glances with each other before doing the same with Jankowski. None of them were particularly in the mood for babysitting. The response they got from Jankowski was relieving, to say the least. The officer nodded as removed his kevlar and exposed his neat high and tight haircut.

"Shit, no argument from us. Alright, boys, we're out."

With a simple gesture from Jankowski, the entourage left leaving two relieved royals and a confused Lelei with Aldritch. As the Marines walked off, Aldritch turned and gave the three ladies in front of him a warm smile.

"Well, you ladies look a little famished. No doubt the talks with the higher ups were exhausting, what's say we head over to the chow-"

He paused a moment, the likely hood that they knew what a chow hall even was was questionable at best. So he went for an easier term.

"Dining hall?"

There was a brief moment of silence before the sound of someone's stomach growling came forth. An embarrassed look from Piña confirmed her as being the source of said sound, a laugh from Aldritch made things comfortable once more.

"Hah, well it's like they say in the Corps. Chow is continuous."

He gave Lelei a quick glance, "No doubt you're hungry too. You should join us."

As ever Lelei gave her same expressionless stare as she nodded at Aldritch, the kind of stare that was unnerving to the officer, to say the least. Clapping his hands together he tried to look as enthusiastic as possible, the hallmark of a Marine officer.

"Well in that case! Let's roll out!"

 _If the men ever heard me say that I'd never hear the end of it._

Having no idea what Aldritch said, but hungry all the same the royals and Lelei merely nodded their heads and began to follow him through the base.

Along the way, Aldritch tried to explain some of the strange sights the royals were seeing. From the materials used in the buildings to even the lights and HESCO barriers. No matter where they went there was no shortage to the number of questions Bozes and Piña had. Occasionally Lelei had to take over in order for Aldritch to catch a breather, her knowledge being almost as vast as his about the "Wonders of Alnus".

Eventually, they finally arrived at the massive building that served as the allies' mess hall. To the royals it was almost as large as a castle, to Lelei and Aldritch it was just another familiar sight in Alnus. As the group made its way to a set of double doors, Aldritch turned on his heels to face the rest of the group.

"Well, here we are, the dining hall. There's a lot of different troops here from different units, most of them are friendly. Others just keep to themselves, all the same just stay behind me and I'll handle everything else."

Piña and Bozes merely nodded. Even if Alnus was part of their world, it was hardly the Alnus they knew. They were guests here.

So with that they made their way inside, already the royals were shocked. The building seemed even larger inside than it did outside. The ceiling was high above, almost as high as what they were used to in palaces. Once again the same white light from the operations building was present here, even a vast space such as this was fully illuminated.

Meanwhile, long tables went on almost as far as the eye could see. Troops from both the JSDF and the Marines could be seen in small separated groups. The room was filled with their chatter, languages that the royals had heard before but couldn't understand filling the space just as much as the light was.

Aldritch motioned for the group to follow him, directing them to grab some strange tray like objects made from a material the royals had never seen before. As they made their way to a booth the royals noticed that eyes were starting to follow them around. As if this wasn't enough, from the moment they had entered to the moment they had made their way to the booth, not a single person had bothered to acknowledge them. Noone had risen from their seats to greet them, bowed, or even nodded.

To Piña this was no surprise, they were strangers here, of course, the troops didn't know who they were. To Bozes though, this was dishonor of the highest degree and it showed in her body language. Something that caught Piña's attention, she whispered to her subordinate stressing the importance of remaining calm.

"Bozes, remember where your pride got you last time. We are strangers here, try to understand it from their perspective. They owe us no formalities as they don't even know who we are. We've avoided invoking their wrath once."

Now Piña's face twisted into a stern look as she placed a hand on Bozes's, gripping it ever so tightly.

"We may not be so lucky a second time."

Bozes did her best to swallow her pride as she sighed, Piña was right. Making a scene here of all places would not end well. Besides they had finally reached the booth itself, the only thing on both of their minds now was food.

Which in this case was assorted and prepared in ways neither of them had ever seen before. As ever they looked to Aldritch and Lelei for assistance and after some awkward translation issues and raised eyebrows from the Marines working behind the booth they finally left with full trays.

Of whatever it was they were served.

As the group made its way through the rows of tables Piña noticed that something had caught Aldritch's eye. He began to make stern expressions and mouthed silent words as he looked off into the distance. Once she looked off in the same direction, she discovered why.

Off at the far end of the room and huddled in their own group against a corner sat Kincaid and his crew, the dragon fighters. It wasn't so much that they were there that seemed to irritate Aldritch, but what they were doing. Every so often one of them would glance over and start to laugh, going back to throwing various objects at each other whenever Aldritch would give them one his dagger-like glances.

Piña gave Aldritch a confused look, occasionally glancing back at the tankers.

"Will we be sitting with them?"

Aldritch shook his head and sighed leading the group over towards a vacant table.

"Nah, they're probably leaving soon anyways."

 _And I'm not trying to be embarrassed either_.

No sooner had the group sat down Aldritch noticed that Lelei was missing, a quick check of his surroundings confirmed his suspicions. The young sorceress was making her way over to the crew, once she arrived at their table Aldritch had clenched his teeth. No doubt they would make a scene.

What happened next was nothing short of surprising, he watched as the crew raised their eyebrows and shifted over allowing Lelei to take up a seat next to them. As she sat down, they seemed to start up a normal albeit slightly nervous conversation.

Then they went right back to laughing, attempting to make Lelei do the same.

Aldritch shook his head and sighed, professional misfits to the end. Returning his attention back to the royals yielded a sight just as amusing. Piña was focused on poking her mashed potatoes with a spoon, meanwhile, Bozes was staring at her peas with wide eyes. It took everything Aldritch had to not laugh, they looked like children learning how to eat adult food for the first time.

"You know, they don't bite."

Both of the royals looked at Aldritch with wide eyes. Had they thought otherwise? Giving a small smile, he pointed to each of the strange objects on their plate.

"Okay from the top; mashed potatoes, peas, steak aaand..."

He paused as he looked at what was supposed to be a pair sugar cookies. Or, rather, ones that were in the shape of the American flag. No doubt some prankster had opened up MRE packages, and craftily shipped them to the chowhall's mess line. There was going to be a lot of pissed off Marines once this fact became widespread.

The lieutenant had been so focused on suspending his disbelief that his tongue slipped, muttering their name in English by accident.

"...Freedom?"

Piña and Bozes raised their eyebrows at this remark. 'Freedom'? Was that supposed to be the name of the baker? Or maybe their origin? The princess raised one of her cookies and held it in front of her for a moment, repeating the name in awkward, broken English.

"Frei-dome?"

Aldritch shook his head and rolled his eyes. Better to quit now, before he turned into the next John Smith, and the Piña into Pocahontas.

"Uh... never mind. They're cookies, try em."

'Freedom', as an English word, had been a mystery to the pair, but they knew what cookies were. What happened next only further added to the growing list of comical scenes. Upon giving them a simultaneous, tentative bite, the girls' faces lit up in what Aldritch assumed was gluttonous, foodgasmic glee. They then proceeded to scarf down what remained of the delicious cookies, and slammed their hands on the table, the sound tearing through the massive chow hall.

Their voices joined as one as they voiced their opinion, a few crumbles flying out of their somewhat full mouths.

"AMAZING!"

Understandably, this had caused Aldritch and a fair majority of the other troops scattered about to almost jump from their seats. Things were silent in the chow hall for a few moments as all eyes fell upon them. To make matters worse, just when things were starting to return to normal, a loud, foul sounding voice yelled out from across the room.

Wilkes, he had watched the whole event go down.

"Delicious!"

Now Aldritch had had enough, he flashed a now laughing Wilkes a glare as he yelled across the room.

"Duty, 1200 Wilkes!"

"Fuck!"

"What was that?!"

"Aye, sir!"

As if on cue, the whole crew including Lelei promptly got up from their seats and made their way out of the chow hall. The tankers out of wanting to avoid any further problems, Lelei out of boredom.

Satisfied, Aldritch composed himself as he returned his attention back to the royals.

"So..I'm guessing you liked them?"

Noticing that both the royals were glaring at his plate, specifically his own cookies. Sighing in defeat, he slid his plate over. Just as before the cookies were promptly scarfed down. Thankfully, this time, it came without the table slamming, much to Aldritch's relief.

As Piña finished savoring the taste, a huge smile began to grow on her face.

"These Freedom Cookies, I have never tasted such fine confectioneries before."

Aldritch couldn't believe what he was hearing, they were nothing more than MRE snacks. Then he thought for a moment, even MREs were probably a far cry from what the royals were used to. Aldritch gave an enthusiastic smile as he responded to her statement.

"Well they're hardly what you'd call fine dining, but I can see how you'd think highly of them. I mean if you want, I'm sure I can sort something out to get you two ladies some more."

Both the royals looked prepared to jump out of their seats at this news, Piña, in particular, looked even more enthusiastic than Bozes. The way she was leaning towards him with her hands clasped together was, well adorable to say the least.

"Would you!? We would be most appreciative of this!"

Aldritch chuckled, he felt like he was treating children to weekend treat. "Of course! My platoon has a lot of pull around here."

As he got up to go strike a deal with the cooks, he promptly stopped. Something had caught his attention and while the remark he was about to make was filled with good intentions. It had more of an impact than he had intended.

"Your highness? If I may, I noticed you don't really smile often. You should do it more often, it suits you. As royalty that is."

Piña merely nodded and turned back to face Bozes. As Aldritch walked away, he failed to notice the blush growing on her face. Bozes did, however, and she gave Piña a cheeky smile.

* * *

 _Later on that evening._

 **2000 HOURS, 2D TANKS SQUAD BAY  
**

"Yo! We got WiFi!"

"What!?"

Kincaid turned to face one of the tankers who was now sitting upright on his rack, his hands holding his phone out in front of him. Sure enough, a quick check on his own phone confirmed it, Wilkes stumbling out of the squad bay's bathroom hiking up his trousers did as well.

"Yep, WiFi is definitely up!"

The simple things in life...

A series of enthusiastic "Rah"'s rang out from many of the other tankers rang out. Marines weren't exactly hard to please, but WiFi was definitely up there on the list of ways to make them happy. Many of the Marines were already logging onto social media to get in touch with loved ones back home.

Meanwhile, Kincaid merely rolled his eyes as he went back to looking over his layout for their return to Earth. His service alphas were already hanging up in his wall locker, their ribbons having long been mounted. This was in no small part thanks to some miracle courtesy of the "Gods of Logistics". The same "Gods" who had somehow gotten their hands on Kincaid and his crew's uniform measurements, the uniforms themselves having been shipped from Okinawa.

For Marine Corps logistics to actually get something so mundane right the first time was mind boggling to all the Marines present. Hell, asking for something actually important was akin to making a deal with the devil.

Strange times indeed.

Meanwhile, on Kincaid's rack, his favorite bomber jacket, black long sleeve shirt, Timberland boots, and faded jeans were neatly laid out. Next to them, a couple lists from the rest of the platoon sat folded up atop some simple sweats for sleeping in. Long lists of requests, some important, most simply creature comforts.

Aldritch had already confirmed earlier that they would be getting some libo as well, so it was decided that the group heading back to Earth would all bring stuff back for the rest of the platoon. After all, what was a platoon if it wasn't a family?

Diet or not, Kincaid was still in a decent mood. They'd be returning to normalcy for a while, wearing normal clothes for what felt like the first time in an eternity. This was thanks in no small part to their loved ones mailing out civilian attire for them to wear for their return, having been properly alerted to the request days prior.

Surprisingly the "Gods of Logistics" hadn't fucked that up either.

Satisfied everything was ready to be packed, Kincaid began to grab his carbine and sidearm. Once again he had guard duty first, he vowed to find the one responsible for making the rosters. In truth having guard duty first wasn't such a bad thing in the first place, it meant he wouldn't have to be woken up in the middle of the night. All the same, having it at all was still an annoyance.

He stopped to grab a NOS and another pack of smokes out of his C-bag, fetching his coyote brown beanie off the top of Wilkes's rack as well. As he made his way down the squad bay, he stopped halfway and turned around to face the rest of the platoon.

"You know, if any of ya'll like want to keep me company? I wouldn't complain."

Silence.

"Yo, you guys fucking suck."

A couple of chuckles rang out as Elton yelled from the opposite side, his face not moving away from the chat he was having on his phone. Kincaid couldn't fault him, no doubt he was having a video chat with his girlfriend and daughter.

"Love you too bro."

"Uh huh."

Shaking his head in defeat Kincaid slung his carbine and made his way outside. Getting a good stretch in he promptly made his way over towards the tanks and a relaxed Dunn looking at his phone.

As he made his way closer Kincaid chuckled as he started walking like a higher up, making precise robotic movements all the while.

"Eh, Marine! What's your first general order?"

Dunn slowly looked up from his phone and gave one of his usual lazy smiles. "To protect my tank and not give a shit about any rank?"

Totally wrong, but that was the point. Kincaid laughed as he gave a belligerent thumbs up.

"Out fucking standing, but you're far from being Senpai yet."

Dunn put his phone away, turning around to grab his carbine off the front slope of his tank. "Then teach me Oneechan!"

"All in due time young grasshopper."

The pair shared a laugh and a smoke as they joked around for a little bit. Once they reached the filters for their respective cigarettes, Dunn gave an exaggerated bow and left Kincaid to take over.

Kincaid sighed as he made his way over towards his tank slowly unslinging his carbine all the while. Setting it on the front slope, he got another stretch in before taking up his seat on the edge. He sat there for a few moments before reaching into his cargo pocket and pulling out his phone, might as well play something to break up the silence.

He paused a moment as he smiled at the photo of him and Aurea, her deer in the headlights look making the picture more comical than anything else.

"Soon."

Finally finding his music library, he scrolled through until he found something that stood out to him. It was moments alone like this that he often felt his mind wander, they were often welcoming. They allowed him to think about his life, think about what had happened so far and what was yet to come.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 20: Staind "So Far Away"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _This is my life_  
 _Its not what it was before_

As the lyrics began to take hold, Kincaid lit up another cigarette and snapped the tab for his NOS.

He took a drag and topped it off with a swig of his drink before looking up at the Special Region night sky for a few moments. Here he was in another world, farther away from home than any Marine had ever been before. To top it off he was listening to rock music in another world, on his tank.

 _All these feelings I've shared_  
 _And these are my dreams_

"God what a life."

 _That I'd never lived before_  
 _Somebody shake me_  
 _Cause I, I must be sleeping_

"I can only imagine."

Kincaid looked up at the source of the voice that had interrupted his train of thought. Of all the people to be making surprise appearances at this time of the night and here of all places, the last person he had been expecting was Kurokawa.

She was garbed in her usual uniform, her pistol strapped to her thigh as she made her way over to the front of the tank. Kincaid let out a cloud of smoke with a raised eyebrow as he took a moment to regard her. For all the time he had been around her, he failed to notice just how tall she was. Hell, she was almost taller than him.

Then again fighting dragons and bandits and flirting with women who had snakes for hair probably took priority over noticing such things.

"Well shit, isn't it passed your bed time or something?"

Kurokawa scoffed as she stood in front of him for a few moments with her arms folded, a look of contempt on her face. Kincaid took a second to take in the sight, he had to admit she had her cute moments.

"I come out all this way to visit you and this is the warm welcome I get? Lazy and rude, Jasper I hardly see you as a ladies man."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he shifted over to great a spot for her. "What you can dish it out but can't take it now? All in good humor, gotta say though. I figured creepy ass Rory would be more likely to show up out of the blue. But hey I could use someone to talk to."

She giggled as she took up a seat next to him. "Careful what you say, she might be listening."

"And there you go putting the fear of god into me."

"Which one, yours or Emroy?"

"The one that doesn't have psychotic apostles running around."

"Do the crusades count?"

Kincaid gripped the front of his chest with a fake look of pain. "Mah chest! Good one."

Kurokawa laughed as she playfully pushed him, her laughter increasing as he pretended to fly back a lot farther than she was putting effort into. He lay on his side for a few moments before sitting upright. "You done beating me up?"

"Yeah I think you've had enough for one day."

Kincaid signaled for her to wait as he downed the rest of what was left in his can. Once that was done he let out an exaggerated sigh as he set the can down.

And promptly put his hands together in a symbol of thanks, his face twisting into a goofy grin. "Arigatou!"

Kurokawa rolled her eyes as she scoffed. "Rude, lazy, and now he butchers the language of others? Should I go yeehaw cowboy?"

"Only if you throw America behind it."

"As if."

Kincaid laughed as he folded his arms, "Alright, alright I apologize. Anyways I'm sure you didn't just wander here by accident, I've seen enough anime to known coincidences don't happen. What's up?"

Kurokawa chuckled as she got a quick stretch in. He was right, even if his explanation was pretty dorky.

"Okay, you caught me. I'll keep it short and simple, I mean, I know how you Marines are."

"Of course, most of us can't even tie our boots. Let's hear it then."

Kurokawa took a deep breath as she prepared herself. Kincaid raised an eyebrow, she was probably making this a lot more dramatic than it really was.

Women.

"Right, well after the diet, if we get time that is. I'd like to show you around Tokyo."

Kincaid didn't have to think twice, a guide certainly wouldn't be a bad thing. Besides, he'd always wanted to visit the city and not by tank either. Now whether or not her intentions were for it to be a date or merely just to hang out remained to be seen. He had a guess it was the former, so he'd be doing his best to try and keep it at the latter.

Or so he told himself.

"Hell yeah, I'm down like Charlie Brown."

Kurokawa raised an eyebrow and cocked her head in puzzlement, she'd never heard a phrase like that before.

"Down like Charlie Brown?"

Kincaid laughed before doing a mock facepalm. "It's a dumb phrase. You know Charlie Brown right?"

"No."

"Oh, right. Well okay, we'll skip the funnies, yeah I'm cool with that idea. Could be fun."

He put his hands together and bowed his head. "I am in your care."

Kurokawa gave him another playful push as she giggled. "You're a dork you know that?"

Kincaid chuckled as he flicked his cigarette butt away. "Yeah I get that a lot."

With the arrangements set and her reason for being there carried out, Kurokawa hopped off the front slope.

"Well then, I look forward to it. Anyways I best be going off, gotta make sure I'm all packed for tomorrow."

Kincaid merely nodded, "As do I, take it easy Mari."

"You too Jasper."

With that Kurokawa began to make her way towards the entrance to the motor pool, she made it halfway before stopping and turning around.

"Oh, one last thing."

"Yeah?"

Kurokawa put on a serious look, the kind she usually had on when she was about to chide him for something.

"That Medusa, Aurea? I'd be careful if I were you, I already had to put some sense into Kurata over that cat girl Persia."

Kincaid raised an eyebrow, "How come?"

"Well, apparently Medusa's thrive off feeding on the energy of males. That would explain why she was eyeing you up like a three-course meal."

Kincaid felt a pit grow in his stomach, a sense of dread slowly spreading throughout his body. Was that really what her motives were? Was he nothing more than a meal?

"Shit, well..that's good to know."

"Good to know? I might've just stopped you from getting killed."

"Yeah you're right, I'll keep my eyes peeled."

Kurokawa merely nodded and went to continue walking. Once she left the motor pool Kincaid lit up another cigarette and took another look at his phone. He stared at the background for a moment, stared at Aurea. Was she really out to get him? As he let out a long cloud of smoke, he smiled.

No, there had to be more to it than that. Different species or not, the telltale signs of a woman being attracted to someone were timeless. As for her being dangerous, he'd get to that when the time came. First things first though, he had a trip back to his own world to get through. One that included potentially rejecting someone or worse.

Slipping back into bad habits he picked up from his father, the kind that involved pissing off a few different women at the same time.

"God, what a life."

 _Now that we're here,_  
 _It's so far away_  
 _All the struggle we thought was in vain_  
 _All the mistakes,_  
 _One life contained_  
 _They all finally start to go away_  
 _Now that we're here its so far away_  
 _And I feel like I can face the day_  
 _I can forgive and I'm not ashamed to be the person that I am today_

* * *

 _Meanwhile.  
_

 **FORMAL ESTATE, ITALICA**

Aurea sighed as she continued to stare out her window, her snakes flicking their tongues out as they tried to taste the air.

Taste the air for his scent.

Every so often the wind would blow, causing her to perk her head up and at the countryside beyond. She knew what noise the "Tanks" made, and the wind often reminded her of it. She'd stare out, hoping to see the silhouettes of the tanks, only to be disheartened when they wouldn't arrive.

"Ma'am?"

Aurea's train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a voice from below. A quick glance revealed who it belonged to; two Marines had been on patrol around the estate's grounds, and saw her leaning out of her window. They looked up at her with strange glasses jutting forward from their faces, their weapons pointed at the ground.

Ever since the Marines had arrived, they had become a welcome and common sight around Italica. Joyce himself served as Myui's adviser, and Aurea had seen the pair many a time pointing at maps or looking over scrolls.

In truth the young maid had no idea what the Marines had said, so in the end, she merely waved at them. The pair promptly returned as they continued their patrol, disappearing from sight as she continued to look out over the horizon.

She paused for a moment as she thought about the events that had transpired the night prior. When the tankers had first stepped through the front gate, she had felt Jasper Kincaid's presence long before she even knew who, or where he was. As a species that thrived off the energy of others, Medusas could feel when an individual had a great a deal of willpower.

Something Jasper had in droves, more than anyone she had ever met before.

There was something more to that man, something beyond the fact that he was from another world. She had never been drawn to a male of any species before. Years of prejudice and outright abuse against her species had formed that, a sheltered life inside the Formal Estate cemented it.

Not everyone was thrilled with the possibility of being turned into a lifeless husk.

But Jasper changed that, he wasn't repulsed by her sight. In fact, he seemed eager to get to know more about her if anything. So it was no surprise that from the moment Aurea had begun talking to Jasper, to the moment he had climbed aboard his tank to leave, she was drawn to him like a moth to the flame.

She wanted to learn more about him, where he came from, what he thought of her world, why his aura stood out against his fellows.

And why she could also feel so much pain behind his smile.

Realizing that Kincaid wasn't coming back tonight Aurea sighed and returned to her bed, moving the sheets aside and getting settled in. Once she was comfortable, she grabbed her pillow and held it close, burying her face into it as her snakes began to spread out wherever they could.

She had a lot of waiting to get through.


	18. The Boys Are Back in Town

**So you know that terrible feeling when you try to make a promise and find out you simply can't keep it?  
**

 **Yeah, that's me right now.**

 **"The road to hell is paved with good intentions." Well, I'd hope missing an update wouldn't get me an all expense paid trip to said hell. The quote fits well all the same however.**

 **In my infinite wisdom, I hadn't thought that midterms would have been such a bitch to get through. And I thought the studying in tank school was bad. Either way, here we are again, back on that old dusty trail. Working on going back through the old chapters as usual, fixing things and what have you.  
**

 **Let me take this moment to make one thing VERY clear.**

 **I will not stop adding to this story until I've reached a good ending. You guys, hell anyone who takes an interest in my work deserves that much. I don't know about ya'll, but I used to hate reading incomplete fictions here. So I'm trying to practice what I preach.**

 **I mean I got my own Tropes page FFS, that's a pretty big thing to me. Thank you to those who made contributed to it by the way, you guys are awesome. All the more reason for me to continue this shindig.**

 **Anyways, enough rambling.**

 **Back at it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 16: The Boys Are Back in Town**

" _I think of the U.S. Marines like we used to think of the Foreign Legion; as big mouths with big hearts."  
_

French Journalist Cathy LeRoy of Marines at Hue, RVN, 1968

 **DECEMBER 14TH 2015, 0800 HOURS, HOTEL IN THE GINZA DISTRICT, TOKYO JAPAN  
**

"Looking sharp."

Jackson admired himself in the mirror for a moment as he fixed his tie and adjusted his suit. After a few more moments of inspecting and sizing himself up in the mirror, he smirked.

He was very much indeed looking sharp. Then again, what sort of self respecting Diplomatic Security agent wouldn't? Jackson sighed as he made his way over towards a nightstand next to his bed. He eyed his standard issue Sig Sauer P226, earpiece, and badge for a moment before placing them in their appropriate places. His pistol to its concealed holster, his earpiece in his right ear and his badge under his suit jacket.

Satisfied everything was in order, he made his way towards the door for his room, opened it, and locked it behind him. As he walked down the hallway two other agents emerged from their respective rooms. Similarly garbed, they merely nodded and followed in behind their leader.

"Heidegger, Roger."

"Jackson."

No need for a lot of words just yet, too busy focusing on the job ahead.

The trio made their way to an elevator at the end of an hallway. Jackson pressed the 'down' button and in moments the metal doors opened revealing an empty interior. Good, civilians always acted suspicious whenever DS agents were around. Then again, a group of men in suits with faces better suited on automatons hardly made for easy conversation.

As the three agents stepped in and made their way to the back of the elevator, Jackson pressed the button for the ground floor, and the doors closed.

Things were quiet for a minute or so, as the agents stood there, waiting to reach the ground floor.

"So...how's everyone doing?"

Silence...

Jackson rolled his eyes, he knew where this was going. The night prior some of the agents, including himself, had thought it wise to go out into the town and hit up the local bars. All well and good until drink ten, Jackson had the common sense to head back to the hotel. Roger, Heidegger, and the others, didn't.

Which wasn't a big deal, except for the fact that Roger was the youngest agent on the team currently assembled. With that youth came the recklessness and desire to live. That been said, nobody was surprised with Jackson's next question.

"Roger."

"Yeah?"

"Is that woman still in your room?"

"What woman?"

Jackson looked over his shoulder at the younger agent, his face expressionless.

"Don't play dumb, everyone could hear you two last night."

At this remark Heidegger snickered, and promptly stopped when Jackson gave him the same treatment. "And you? What happened to babysitting him?"

Heidegger merely smirked as he shrugged, "He's a peacock, you gotta let him fly."

"Uh huh."

Jackson merely sighed and went back to looking at the elevator door, as the tone of each passing floor continued to ring out all three suddenly began to laugh. Agents or not, even they had a habit of reverting to "The old ways".

But Jackson was still an old dog, and old dogs still had to show the younger ones who's boss from time to time.

"She better be out by this evening."

The laughter stopped as they hit the ground floor, Roger running a hand behind his head as he kept a calm face.

"Solid."

With that the doors opened, and the trio stepped out into the elaborate hotel common area. As the doors closed behind them, the three subconsciously straightened their ties and tapped their earpieces, a habit formed from countless security assignments and training operations.

It also made them look professional, at least that was what they were hoping for.

It seemed to be working, as everywhere they went they were met with wide eyes and hushed whispers. For all the locals knew, the three foreign men they were seeing were the Men In Black. They weren't half wrong, but there certainly weren't any aliens the agents were on the lookout for. At least, not the stereotypical kind from science fiction.

Every agent involved in the upcoming security detail was well aware that representatives from beyond the gate were going to accompany the Marines and Japanese soldiers at the Diet, having long received Intel from their "Friends" in the CIA. The only problem was, they had absolutely no idea what these representatives were going to look like. That said, they kept open minds.

As the three agents made their way out of the hotel and into the cold, they were met with a familiar sight. Two black four door up armored SUVs sat running in front of the entrance, their windows tinted and various antennae jutting out at odd angles. These vehicles were a common sight wherever any U.S. agents went; trusty, reliable and above all, discrete.

Well, as discrete as suspicious looking SUVs could get.

Jackson nodded at Heidegger and Roger, "Just wait in the truck."

The other two agents merely nodded in return and made their way towards the lead SUV, while Jackson made his way over to the rear one. As he approached the vehicle's passenger door, its darkened window slowly rolled down, revealing two other agents in the driver's and passenger's seat. Like Jackson, they too were garbed in the same suit, and just as foreign to these lands as he was. One being Hispanic and the other obviously a white American.

"Jackson."

"Chuck, Ramirez. You guys good to go?"

"Solid."

Jackson looked past the pair and into the rear passenger seats of the vehicle, he didn't have to look hard to confirm their "Ace in the Hole" was just as ready. As he did so, a few faces peered back at him from the rear. Unlike the other agents, these men were anything but dressed in suits.

Heavily geared with balaclavas and top of the line kevlars, they were ready for anything. They had to be, high priority assignments such as this called for high priority security.

And when it came to high priority security assignments, U.S. Diplomatic Security brought its best, the MSD, or Mobile Security Deployment teams. Trained for months in high threat environments and simulations, they were the decisive hand should any situation ever spiral out of control. Though many a security assignment had gone without incident, DS's philosophy was quite simple.

Better safe than sorry. And with the whole world watching Japan today? Now was definitely a time for safety to be at the top of the list.

Seeing that everything was good to go, Jackson merely gave the MSD team and the other agents a thumbs up, giving the SUV a reassuring smack on the hood. As he made his way to the lead vehicle Jackson tapped on his earpiece.

"Hotel Five, this Room One. Be advised, we are good to go and ready to begin our move to the Gate."

Jackson didn't have to wait long for an agent to respond back, no doubt he was monitoring the entire situation from some control room with the Japanese.

"Solid copy Room One, you're cleared to begin your move."

"Roger."

"Oh and Jackson?"

Jackson had just began to open the door to the lead vehicle before he stopped, "Yeah?"

"Go see your son."

Jackson opened the door and clambered into the SUV's passenger seat, as he slammed the heavy door shut he tapped his earpiece once more.

"Tango."

* * *

 _Blood everywhere, Rory laughing manically, the sounds of gunfire as everyone else continues the fight. Italica is being overrun, it has to be. We're out of ammo for the tank and now we're outside fighting these bandits off with whatever we have._

 _My carbine has run dry, but they keep coming. I only have one other option, I drop my last magazine and fix my K-Bar to my carbine's bayonet lug. Funny right? New weapon, same old tactics._

 _This isn't a fight, it's a blood bath. The screams of the dead and dying ring everywhere, the rest of my crew shouting as we fend the enemy off of our tank, our home. Fires burn in the background casting a hellish orange glow over the battle, really makes for a weird scene you know?  
_

 _My god would you have a field day with this place bro._

 _Suddenly I see Benitez get dragged off the front slope, no not again. I won't lose another one, I won't let them take him Raymond._

 _Him or anyone else, I promise._

 _I run down the turret with Wilkes, we scream in rage as we throw ourselves at the enemy. Bones crunch as we stomp on limbs, my bayonet digs deep into flesh as I thrust every which way. It's blind rage, I've never experienced this before._

 _It feels good, but it feels wrong too._

 _Suddenly I feel the wind get knocked out of me, my carbine flies from my hands and lands god knows where. I can't see, my glasses have been knocked off, but that's not all, someone is standing over me._

 _And he isn't an ally._

 _Is this it? Is this where I die? In some different world by an enemy that can't even match us in technological prowess?_

 _No, that's just fucking embarrassing. Besides, I still have shit I want to do in life._

 _I scream in rage and knock my attacker down, guess he wasn't expecting that. Dirt covers us as we begin to roll about. Eventually I get the upper hand, I pin his arms to the ground. No bayonet, sidearm is empty. Guess I only have one choice, I still have the two things I was born with._

 _My hands._

 _So I dig them deep into his neck, I choke him. I scream as I choke him. "Die! Die! DIE!"_

 _My rage is beyond words now, all I can feel for the enemy is hatred. I continue to dig deeper into his neck, his eyes filled with fear as he tries to peel me off. It's not working._

 _He fucked with the wrong guy huh Raymond?_

 _Once I kill him, I finally fetch my carbine and return to the fight. I hear Rory's voice call out to me, "Yes Jasper! Do you feel it?! Do you feel him calling to you!?"_

 _I don't, I'm not an animal. All the same, I fight like one._

 _So I kill, and kill, and kill._

* * *

Kincaid promptly shot upright, his eyes darting every which way as he tried to figure out where he was.

After a few moments he sighed, he wasn't in Italica fighting like a madman. No, that battle was long behind him, just like Afghanistan. Another nightmare to add to the potentially growing list.

The sound of Wilkes's familiar snoring confirmed this as well.

Kincaid ran his hands up his face, rubbing his eyes as he tried to calm his nerves. He stopped for a moment as his palms rested on his lips, something wasn't right. He felt around his mouth for a moment then sighed again.

He had forgotten that he had shaved last night. When Wilkes came to relieve him from guard duty, he brought more than just the promise of going back to the squadbay and getting some sleep. Evidently, Aldritch had stopped by, and had instructed the rest of the crew to ditch the moustaches. So, with a heavy heart and a lowered head, Kincaid made his way back to the squadbay's bathroom, and did the unthinkable.

He got rid of the one thing a Marine could pride themselves on when in the field.

Thus a crew of baby faces fought there.

Kincaid shook his head. Reaching under his pillow, he felt his way past his loaded Sig Sauer and felt for his phone. Once he found the object of his desires he laid back down and turned it on. After a few agonizingly slow moments of waiting for it to boot up, he was finally greeted by its background.

Aurea.

He stared at the photo for a few moments, his mind wandering to the possibility of seeing her again and of just how dangerous she might actually be, if Kurokawa's warnings were anything to go off of. He was playing with fire, he wasn't on this deployment to go play Avatar with a different species. Yet all the same, something told him things were going to involve a lot less shooting, and whole lot more learning and teaching in the coming months.

Which is what he wanted to do with Aurea, to learn more about this world and maybe teach her about his own. It was a unique position, but it was also wishful thinking at best. The Marine Corps certainly wasn't going to bend over backwards for one tanker, fantasy world or not.

Kincaid merely shook his head. His method to problem solving was usually crossing the proverbial bridge when he got to it, and right now he was far away from that bridge. Instead, he had another one coming up.

The Diet, Earth.

Kincaid groaned as he checked the time on his phone, he still had thirty minutes before they had to get up and get ready for the big trip back. He was more disappointed over the fact that he was missing out on the extra sleep than anything else, but time was a precious thing in the military, especially in the Marines.

So rather than mentally bitch and moan about it, he decided to use this time to get a head start on getting ready. After all, alphas were annoying in regards to actually getting on, just like anything that wasn't cammies.

Of course, not as annoying as dress blues.

But first things first, a smoke and a shower.

 **XXXXXXX**

 _Sometime later...  
_

"Dog, I fuckin hate putting this shit on. Big people problems."

"Right? Well at least we'll look fresh as fuck."

"Hey, uh... guys? You got any extra shirt stays?."

"Fuckin Benitez, yo I gotchu."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he listened to the rest of the crew fuss about with getting their alphas on. In truth, much like Wilkes, he wasn't having an easy go either. Big people problems indeed, seventy-two inches and weighing in at two hundred pounds to be precise. Measurements that Wilkes had Kincaid beat in regards to the later.

Even with the legacy and curious looks that came with wearing them, everyone could agree with one thing when it came to wearing non utility uniforms.

They were uncomfortable.

It certainly wasn't helping that the rest of the platoon was lounging in comfortable FROG suits or PT gear. Their snickers and jeering pouring fuel on the proverbial fire. Of course, all it took was the promise of not bringing anything back from Earth to make the others stop. Take a Marine away from home, sure he'll fight. Take away all his creature comforts? Including Tobacco? That's a recipe for disaster on both sides.

Eventually, the four Marines fought past the rigors of donning their service uniforms and stood there admiring themselves. Their ribbons perfectly mounted and displayed proudly against the olive drab fabric.

To be a Marine is a constant back and forth. Most want to get out by year three, some squash all forms of motivation early on. But if there's one thing that every Marine always does, even if they won't admit it? It's carry their head high, and subconsciously think they're the biggest, meanest, and best looking guy in the room.

Especially when they get to dress up.

"Hey Wilkes."

"What?"

"Look."

Wilkes had finished packing some items into a sea bag when Kincaid's voice caught his attention. Turning around and looking at the squadbay's center aisle, he began to chuckle.

There stood Kincaid, standing at parade rest with his service cover cocked on his head at a forty-five degree angle. With a huge grin, he began to talk with an accent similar to those found in old U.S. WW2 propaganda videos.

"Hey there champ! Lookin for action?! Excitement!? Adventure!?"

Wilkes's face twisted into one of his trademark grins as he put his own cover on in a similar fashion. He put a hand on his hip, giving a jovial wave with the other. He tried his best not to laugh as he mirrored Kincaid's accent.

"Why, yes I am good sir!"

"Well do I have just the place for you, and golly gee is it a blast!"

"Is it!?"

"Fuck no! Now get your ass in that fuckin tank ya clutz! War ain't gonna win itself!"

By now the rest of the platoon was laughing as Wilkes and Kincaid fell into another one of their infamous adhoc charades. Even Johnson couldn't help but chuckle.

This was a common sight for anyone close to the two. They prided themselves on being clowns, and lived for laughing and making others laugh. Once Benitez and Elton joined in, it only got better. Of course, throughout the scene, nobody had noticed that Aldritch had long came into the squadbay.

He watched with an amused smile for a few moments before clearing his throat loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Gentlemen?"

Like someone had flipped a lightswitch, all the laughter died down and every face turned towards the front of the squadbay. Once everyone saw that Aldritch was in his own service alphas, the moment of quiet was a brief one.

"Ayyyyy!"

Aldritch tried to suppress a smirk as he walked down the center aisle, his corframs tapping against the floor. Meanwhile, Kincaid and the rest of the crew regained their bearing and stood at attention, no doubt Aldritch would want to inspect their uniforms.

It certainly wasn't like he had the courtesy of letting them know beforehand. Then again, some things were a given. Before Aldritch could even begin an in depth inspection, one thing caught his eye before anything else.

The ribbons.

They weren't displayed wrong, they weren't in bad condition, no the reason for the growing pit in his stomach was even simpler.

With the exception of Benitez, everyone else in the crew had more ribbons and medals than Aldritch. Even with their recent deployment, even with all the fights they had been in, he was still the one thing every officer feared to be in their platoon.

A Boot.

...Well until the paperwork went up and someone made the necessary changes to his service record. Until then, he'd just have to stomach his pride. So, with a heavy heart, he went over their uniforms. He knew damn well they were mentally laughing at him all the while.

To be a Marine is to participate in what's known as a constant "Pissing Contest". Everyone wants to be better than everyone else.

Well the ones that give a damn, anyway. One of the biggest and easiest forms of establishing "Superiority" is the amount of ribbons, medals, and awards one has. That been said, if you're a higher rank than your subordinates? And you have less "Shiny" on your uniform than they do? Good luck winning the first impression contest.

After that, it's up to how you treat your men what will ultimately make or break your reputation with them.

In Aldritch's case he knew he lost the first impression contest, but he had a hunch they still had a decent amount of respect for him. Shiny or not, the battlefield had brought them together.

Their distance away from home brought them together as family, and in this new world, it was going to be that bond, as Marines, as tankers, what would see them through.

Once Aldritch found that everything was in order, he gave them permission to relax.

"Well boys, everything checks out here. Looking sharp, looking professional, and above all? You look like proper..."

Aldritch suddenly noticed the totally out of regulation haircuts they all had, including his own. In their defense, nobody brought clippers, and even still, when would they ever have had time to get haircuts in the first place?

"...Marines."

Aldritch sighed in defeat, he did his best to make both him and the others look as in regulation as possible. Surely that'd have to amount to something, even in the ever demanding Marine Corps. A situation about to be made all the more worse when yet another "Guest" entered the squadbay.

"Attention on deck!"

Every Marine, regardless of what state of dress they were in, promptly leaped out of their racks and stood at the position of attention at the sound of Johnson's voice. There was only one person who warranted this sort of greeting, the Lieutenant Colonel. And, as a few nervous eyes slowly looked towards the entrance, their suspicions were confirmed.

Sure enough there he was, garbed in his usual woodland FROG suit, his trademark smirk visible for all to see. Things were quiet for a few moments, the only sound being his boots tapping on the floor as Kane made his way down the center aisle. After he made it halfway to where Aldritch and Kincaid's crew were standing, he chuckled.

"At ease."

One by one every Marine present slowly relaxed and went to the position of parade rest, unsure of what to do next. Even Aldritch was uncertain, it certainly wasn't like he knew Kane would be visiting. Just another scare tactic employed by higher ups.

Typical brass.

Kane chuckled again as he looked around the squadbay, "Relax! I'm not here to chastise you."

Still hesitant, the Marines began to relax further, merely standing around and waiting for Kane's next word. Meanwhile, the officer his made way towards Aldritch and the others. Stopping just in front of them, he gave them a quick over before smiling.

"Looking sharp boys, real sharp. Be careful though, you might get some jealous looks."

Kane looked around the room once more while he finished his statement, "But hey, we pride ourselves on that do we not?"

All the Marines gave an enthusiastic "Err!" as they began to laugh.

"Damn right, bring it in boys."

As one, all the Marines formed a school circle around Kane; a few sat, some knelt and others stood. He waited for all of them to get settled before he folded his arms.

"It's been a while since we last talked hasn't it? Okinawa, I believe? A lot of shit has gone down between then and now, the first battle through the gate..."

Kane looked directly at the crew of Here We Go Again, "The dragon..."

They couldn't help but smirk, even if the dragon was still alive, they sure gave it a good beating.

With RCT3's help of course, and their subsequent rescue of said tank.

"Then there's Italica, all in all damn fine job. It goes without saying that you've become something of a group of celebrities around here. Nothing wrong with that, we like being the center of attention, do we not?"

Once again the Marines let out an enthusiastic "Err!" as they took in the praise from their Lieutenant Colonel. Hardships or not, it was always good to be recognized for a job well done. Little victories add up, and the men of Horsemen Platoon had been run ragged since Ginza.

"You've been our decisive hand, _**my** _ decisive hand. You have been fair, professional, and above all? Absolutely fucking lethal. But you know what they say. There's no rest for the wicked, and boys? The plot for this little story we're in? It's only thickening, and there's plenty of wicked out there waiting for us. No doubt you've already heard, but our brothers from the Third MEB are en route. General Augustine is gonna be leading the show soon."

The Marines had heard this before at Italica, but back then it was all rumors and speculations. Hearing it from Kane himself was the word of god, and that meant only one thing.

The situation was a lot bigger than they realized.

Kane noticed the surprised looks going around and put his hands up to calm them down, "Gentlemen? No need to worry, General Augustine will be in charge of our overall mission, but you're still going to answer directly to me. No doubt he'll use us to tighten any loose ends in the territories we control, meanwhile the MEB will focus on expansion."

Things went quite for a few moments before Kane cleared his throat, "That been said, any of you have any questions for me? Anything at all?"

The Marines looked around at each other. Generally speaking, situations like this were a hit or miss. What one might think was a perfectly fair question to ask might be something they simply didn't "Rate" to know.

Eventually, one of the men stood up and addressed Kane.

Parker.

"Sir? Respectfully, what does this mean? Do we have any idea how long we're gonna be here for? What exactly is our mission?"

Aldritch wanted to glare at Parker. That was a question way beyond his pay grade, even as a Corporal tank commander. Thankfully, Kane didn't seem to mind. In fact, that was probably the question he was looking to be asked the most.

"Corporal Parker? To be truthfully honest, I have no idea. This is a strange and unique situation for everyone here, and really, only the Japanese have a monopoly on the end state. What I can say for sure is this, we are here to ensure they don't repeat any mistakes we made in Iraq or Afghanistan. No doubt most of you are well aware that this is their first "Rodeo", so to speak. They've been doing good so far, but you know what they say. A thousand "atta boys" can be ruined by one "oh shit". When and if that oh shit will show up remains to be seen. But that's why we're here. To expect the unexpected."

Kane cleared his throat before continuing, "As for how long we're gonna be here? I can't say for sure either, that all depends on how quick the Japanese want to resolve this situation. We currently know that the forces that came through the gate belong to the Empire, but the same can't be said for who we fought during our first fight in this world. It's all up in the air, but based off the different standards taken off the battlefield we've been led to believe that the vast majority of the forces we fought were comprised of troops from different powers. Now whether or not the gate itself was their doing or the Empire's remains to be seen. Now if history is anything to go off of, Empire's rely on their vassal states for power. Seeing as how we just kicked the collective asses of god knows how many, I'd venture to say that the Empire itself is in a pretty dicey situation."

He paused for a moment to catch his breath, that was quite a bit of information and judging by how he promptly cleared his throat? He still had much more to divulge.

"Another thing, based off wet work conducted by some special forces spooks as well as some simple first contact interaction. We now know that the Empire is led by an Emperor Molt Sol Augustus. So far we've received little in the way of just what kind of man he is, but if Ginza and the general state of affairs around these parts are anything to go off of? We can assume he cares very little in the way of his subjects or allies. Bad for him, good for us."

Kane took a moment to look around at each and every Marine present.

"Now what does that mean for all of you? Hearts and minds is paramount here, more important than it ever was in our old conflicts. If the rumors are to be believed, the people have already began forming opinions about you. They call you the Dragon Fighters, The Knights of Emroy. I heard about the worship that went down at Italica. Pretty off putting if you ask me, but it's there and it is what it is."

The colonel began to pace back and forth, his eyes going over each Marine present.

"So far you've been doing more for us than just slaying bodies, you're forming a legacy here. Now don't let it get to your heads too much, plenty of other units have been whooping it on as well. Either way, the people believe that so long we're around? No harm will befall them and that been said? We intend to use that to our advantage."

The Marines took a moment as they began to digest the information, Kincaid in particular feeling a pit in his stomach. The needs of the Corps was once again coming forth, they weren't leaving anytime soon.

"So, as for how long you'll be here? Consider it the foreseeable future. And this isn't just you boys, but everyone else involved. Experience is going to play dividends here, and the people will resound better with familiar faces."

Home, it was going to be a long time before they ever saw that again. Fantasy world or not, nothing can ever beat that familiar feeling being on your own soil. Many of the Marines had mentally broke down right there, just how long would the "Needs of the Corps" demand their all?

Kane could feel the Marine's moods drop and he couldn't blame them.

He was a father after all.

"Gentlemen, I know. We all want to see this thing through to the end, hell our enemy is a bunch of idiots with swords and spears. We _**should**_ be storming the capital right now, there's nothing they could do to stop us. But we _**can't**_ , why? Because it isn't the _**right**_ thing to do."

All of the Marines were visibly confused at this remark, for a Marine colonel to make a statement like that was uncharacteristic of the position.

"The Japanese are leading this operation foremost, their politicians as well as some of ours believe that it's in our best interest to show tact here. Power is a gift gentlemen and one that needs to be handled responsibly. Would we be any better than the enemy if we just kept blasting through? No, and that's what a lot of assholes back home think we'd do here too. That we're just a bunch of gun toting mongrels who don't care outside of killing the enemy and laying waste to his home. We all know that isn't true, but hey you know what our last two wars were portrayed as. You can blame the media for that, the same media you've been proving wrong here."

Kane straightened his cammies before looking over each Marine again. "Gentlemen, believe in the mission. This is where we're supposed to be and a lot of people back home honor your commitment and your service. This is the campaign we've needed, a clear purpose and a clear end state. People will be writing books about this and you'll all have a tale or two to tell when you get home."

All of the tankers steeled themselves as they put renewed faith in themselves. The colonel was right, this was a good mission, it was good honest work. It would be a long journey but they intended to see it through to its end.

"OORAH!"

Whenever that was.

Seeing that his speech had worked, Kane nodded satisfied.

"Anyways! You boys are heading back to earth. I won't brow beat you about the Diet, you know what to do. I expect the same professionalism there that you've been displaying here. Those politicians will try to back you into a corner, possibly make you answer uncomfortable questions. Stay firm and answer truthfully, but be tactful about it."

Aldritch and the others merely nodded, there wasn't anything more to be said.

"Right then! Well, let's send you boys off. Time to go make history."

Once more, the Marines in question merely nodded and began gathering their things, while Aldritch went off to talk to Kane, no doubt discussing matters that didn't concern the enlisted.

Time to go make history indeed.

* * *

 _Sometime later...  
_

For all the preparation a Marine can put into their uniforms, there's one fact of life that they simply can't avoid.

The inevitable scuffing of their corframs.

A fact of life that Aldritch and his Marines were currently living with as they made their way towards the gate's entrance. No fancy methods of transportation here, they had to walk.

Typical Marine Corps.

Thankfully, the Marines weren't alone in their woes. Not long after they reached their destination, the representatives from RCT3 and the three girls arrived to meet them. All well and good until everyone began eyeing each other's "Sunday best".

Aldritch in particular took note that Rory was even there in the first place. Unbeknownst to everyone present, he had long gotten word from Kane about keeping an eye on her. She hadn't done anything wrong, at least not yet, but all the same, orders were orders. She had command sufficiently spooked, to the point they wanted to keep tabs on her.

Enough to have sent Emerson's team to Italica for the sole purpose of getting eyes on her, at least so he assumed.

He couldn't blame them, though. A demigod wielding a massive halberd with the appearance of a child, anyone not fazed, or at least suspicious of that needed a serious reality check.

And now they were bringing her along to Earth. Sure, what could possibly go wrong? Aldritch shook the notion from his mind as he returned to the basics. Basics such as sizing up their Japanese companions.

Much like Benitez and himself; Shino, Kurokawa, Tomita, and Itami didn't have much to show in the way of awards. If that wasn't enough, long before their awards were even a factor, the Marines were already looking over their service uniforms.

They weren't all that impressed, the Berets the Japanese soldiers wore didn't help their cause, either. On the other hand, the Japanese had been eyeing the Marines like they had stepped out of a museum. They weren't half wrong, every piece of the Marines' uniforms had a symbolism traced back to the earliest days of their organization. Then there was of course the fact they had more ribbons.

For just a moment, things were understandably tense. All in good fun, though.

Itami merely raised an eyebrow at Aldritch and his men, "Well, talk about dressing for the occasion. You guys are certainly prepared."

Aldritch wouldn't let this challenge go unanswered. Besides his response would be a lot more polite than anything the enlisted could muster up. "Well you know, we aim to please. You guys aren't looking too shabby yourselves."

The two officers shook hands, but the enlisted on both ends could tell it was a very firm testing handshake.

Moments like this were a given between the troops of different militaries. Everyone wants to be the top dog. Where some might see hostilities, those who've served see nothing more than "Friendly rivalry". Some things are simply timeless.

Meanwhile the three girls looked at the troops with wide eyes. They knew they weren't nobility, but their uniforms had an unmistakably authoritarian feel to them. Rory in particular couldn't help but giggle, much to the Marines' annoyance. No doubt her "Knights of Emroy" were displaying their colors to full effect.

Understandably, the Marines weren't in the mood for her antics. Then again, they never were. Once things began to settle down, the next phase of the trip through the gate began.

The waiting phase.

While the group began to form small conversations among the various members, Kincaid stepped aside and took the time to light up a cigarette.

Old habits die hard after all. Of course, whatever solace he was seeking was quickly interrupted.

"You know, you were this close to winning some sort of redemption. Now here you are looking like a professional smoker."

Kincaid let out an audible groan, his cover angling up as he tilted his head back in anguish.

"Mari, please, can't a man enjoy the simple things in life?"

He looked over at Kurokawa as she made her way over towards him. Like Itami and the others, she was garbed in the standard Japanese service uniform, a dark green overcoat covering her normal uniform. She folded her arms and to chastise him in her usual manner.

"I simply don't understand Jasper, what's the point of getting dressed up if you're going to turn around and ruin the image by smoking?"

Kincaid let out a puff of smoke. "Ruin the image for who?"

He looked around and cupped a hand above his eyes, "I'm not trying to impress anyone right now. And besides." He took another drag and raised an eyebrow at her, "I didn't have breakfast this morning."

She rolled her eyes, "What kind of excuse is that?"

"The only kind I had off the top of my head."

"Uh huh."

Kurokawa shook her head and sighed. She could see this was yet another losing battle with the stubborn Marine. Then something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. Elsewhere in the group, Shino looked like she was moments away from flipping out on Wilkes. She eyed his uniform with jealously, occasionally looking as though she was doing her best to suspend her disbelief. Meanwhile, the burly Marine tried his best to get her to calm down. Much like Kincaid, he clearly wasn't much of a morning person.

The medic understood the situation perfectly. Wilkes was a lower rank than Shino, and he had more to show on his uniform. For someone like her this was too much to bear. For someone who really didn't care like Wilkes, this was unnecessary drama.

She looked at Kincaid's uniform and came to the same realization that she was in the same boat. Unlike Shino however, it didn't bother her, in fact it made her curious if anything.

"Say, Jasper?"

Kincaid took one last drag from his cigarette, tossing the butt on the ground and crushing it beneath his shoe. "Yeah?"

She looked at the various medals and ribbons on his chest and put on a sincere look of curiosity, "So what are all those?"

"Ribbons?"

"I know that, smartass, but what do they mean?"

Kincaid chuckled before looking down at them, he then began to point to each individual award as he named them. "Right, Global War on Terrorism, National Defense, Afghan Campaign, NATO ISAF Afghanistan, Good Conduct, Combat Action."

Kurokawa had counted, six in total. Most were medals but a few had just been ribbons. "So, is that a pretty normal number?"

The tanker nodded in agreement. "Yeah, for most guys coming in during the big shit show in Afghan. I guess you could say we got lucky, though. My compamy. Delta, was the last tank unit to operate in Afghan."

She suddenly remembered the Combat Action award he had mentioned, she didn't think twice before she asked. "So, Combat Action..how did you get that? The first time that is."

Kincaid's face suddenly took a more serious appearance as he calmly pulled up on his right sleeve revealing a small black metallic band on his wrist. As he pointed to it, Kurokawa squinted as she tried to get a better look.

"Corporal James Raymond, Delta Company First Platoon, KIA 20132409, Afghanistan."

The sergeant felt a pit grow in her stomach. This was it. This had to be the source of his night terrors and she felt absolutely horrid for asking. She tried to think of something to say as he calmly pulled his sleeve back up, but in truth, she simply couldn't find the right words.

"Oh..."

Kincaid merely shook his head and looked off elsewhere. "Don't sweat it, it's long passed. He's probably proud of how we're doing."

But it really wasn't passed, even if Raymond was indeed proud of how Kincaid and Wilkes were doing. Kurokawa knew this, the look of fear in his eyes that night he woke up violently after the dragon confirmed it.

Before the conversation could continue any further, a small black four door car slowly pulled up. It stopped in front of the group and the engine grumbled to sleep. For a few moments everyone shared the same surprised look. They had a few ideas about who its occupants could be, but why was there even a civilian vehicle on base in the first place? It certainly wasn't their transport through the gate, it wasn't big enough to fit them all in.

Their assumptions were soon put to rest as the driver's door opened up, and out stepped a well groomed Japanese officer. With his glasses and obviously styled hair, he had the look of a pencil pusher, yet one crafty enough to know the ins and outs of the whole operation by heart. The Marines had no idea who he was, then again, their interactions with any of the Japanese troops were limited outside of RCT3.

Besides, he looked like Frank Grimes, as Benitez discretely pointed out between hushed chuckles.

Itami and Aldritch both promptly approached the officer, no doubt to converse about things enlisted didn't need to know, or would get to know when deemed necessary.

Which was usually last minute.

Of course, no one including Aldritch and Itami were prepared for what came next. The officer opened one of the rear passenger doors, revealing Bozes and Pina, in the same attire they had left Italica in.

Talk about last minute. Evidently the two royals were coming through the gate as well. Kincaid and his crew mentally sighed, this meant Aldritch was no doubt going to put on a show and try to look as impressive as possible. This also meant the crew of _Here We Go Again_ were going to have to be on their best behavior, and things were going to get really uptight for them.

Such as Aldritch offering Pina a hand to help her out of the vehicle, even going so far as taking a bow, much to her obvious amusement. As if she wasn't already amused the moment she had seen him in the first place, two awards and all. Kincaid and the others took note of this, clearly they weren't the only ones "Going above and beyond" with the locals.

Everyone's a sucker for a pretty face.

Thankfully, before things could get any more awkward, the dome's large automated doors began to swing open, revealing the bright, glowing blue crystal encrusted in the Gate's entrance. They rumbled and whined as servos and hydraulics were pushed to their limit, many paying witness to this wondered just who was in charge of the controls or where they even were.

As the doors opened fully, the mismatched group of troops and Special Region representatives were greeted with by a large tour bus. Whether or not it had been waiting there or timed its transit through the gate just in time was anyone's guess.

Everyone had mixed feelings upon boarding the bus. For the members of RCT3, they were going home, back to Japan. It was an easy fact of life for them, home was merely a tunnel away, for all intents and purposes. For the Special Region representatives, on the other hand, it was a chance to explore a new world, a world that had sent forth strange men and their contraptions. They longed to know what was on the other side.

As for the Marines, going back to Earth or not, they still felt a sense of loss. Japan wasn't their home, America was. Maryland, Philadelphia, New York, Pittsburgh and Boston. These were their homes, their back yards, and as opposed to the Japanese, they weren't just a tunnel away.

At home they weren't Kincaid, Wilkes, Elton, Benitez and Aldritch, the tankers of Charlie Company, Second Tank Battalion. At home their uniforms came off, they were Jasper, Darian, Parker, George and James. Sure they held their heads high, sure they knew they were Marines, but at home they could be themselves, free from the stresses of being on base. From their moment of their enlistment to the day they died, they would always be Marines, but before that, they were something else and being home reminded them of that.

They still hadn't forgotten what Kane said. It would be a long, long time before they were ever back where they belonged. All the time off in the world didn't beat time off at home. So as the Marines conversed with the rest of the group, and put on good faces, they did their best to try to push that thought far away.

"Wake me when we get there."

Kincaid tapped Wilkes on the shoulder as he put his earbuds in. The last time he went through the gate was in his tank and dead asleep. Now, he was doing it in a tour bus. It was worth noting that both times he gotten little sleep the night prior.

And probably wouldn't have been able to enjoy a nap right now if Kurokawa had sat next to him.

Wilkes chuckled as he took one of them and put it in his own ear, "Well shit, share the love man."

As the bus began to lurch forward and make its way down the tunnel, Kincaid looked over at Wilkes with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't tell me you didn't bring your own."

"Naw I did, I'm just lazy."

"I hate you sometimes."

"Love youuu."

Kincaid rolled his eyes as he scrolled through his phone to find a song worth playing, for both parties involved. A task easier said than done, before he could even open his music library he heard Wilkes snicker.

He had seen the background on Kincaid's phone.

"Oooh shit, mack daddy moving in."

Kincaid rolled his eyes keeping his voice to a whisper. "Dog keep that shit hush hush would ya?"

"Oh I gotchu, trying to play the field right? Bag the medic and the snake girl? Dog you're moving up in the world."

"Dog, chill. I'm not trying to bag Mari, alright? She's cool and all, but no."

"So? Smash and move on."

Kincaid's face twisted into one of disbelief, "Oh right? Cause that would blow over real fucking well. Jesus, man, your lack of a filter is both a blessing and a curse sometimes, you know that?"

Wilkes couldn't help but shrug, he honestly didn't see anything wrong in what he said. Then again, he rarely ever did.

"Whatever man, I know one thing though."

"What?"

Wilkes leaned in closer. "Shino? The crazy Sergeant bitch? I'm in it to win it, you feel me?"

Any sane minded person would have heard this and thought of Wilkes as a revolting Neanderthal. In some regards, they weren't wrong, but this was simply who he was. His habits aside, he was still family, and even Kincaid had his foul moments from time to time. So, in the end, Kincaid merely rolled his eyes. Wilkes was going to do what he wanted to do.

"Right...well, when she twists you into a fucking pretzel don't come crying to me."

Wilkes put his hands out in disbelief, "Me? Bruh you forget who you're talking to."

"Oh I haven't, just promise me one thing."

"What?"

"Don't get us in trouble."

"Who?"

"Exactly."

Eventually, Kincaid found a track, as it began to play he had a hunch Wilkes wasn't against the melody entering his ear.

Him swaying head his head to the beat of the music was a dead give away.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome  
**

 **Track 21: DJ Rashad "I'm Gone"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _I left three days ago_

 _but noone seems to know I've gone_

As Kincaid laid his head back against the seat, he took notice of strobe lights set up at frequent intervals. Some brave engineers had come through at some point and installed them, no doubt to prevent anyone from driving off into the unknown. They lit up the tunnel's gloom with a dull red glow, and with the soft melody of the song he was listening to, Kincaid soon found himself falling asleep.

Or rather, trying to. Something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye, that feeling of being watched. As Kincaid slowly looked towards the back of the two seats in front of him, he saw it. Two large blue eyes stared at him, unblinking, they felt like they were boring directly into his very soul. If Aurea's staring made time stand still, this individual's staring made him feel completely uneasy.

Lelei.

Things were quiet for a few moments, the only sounds coming from the heavy vehicle's journey, and the occasional chatter from one of the various members of the group heading to Earth. Kincaid nudged a now sleeping Wilkes a few times.

He had to see this.

"Dude..."

Wilkes yawned and looked around for a few moments, cranky that he had been woken up. Once he saw Lelei he had almost jumped out of his seat. An interesting sight, to say the least.

"Yo...chill!"

Now that Lelei had both Wilkes's and Kincaid's undivided attention, she voiced her curiosity. Gazing at the strange cables coming from both their ears all the while. What was more unnerving was the fact that she spoke in almost perfect English.

"What are you doing?"

The two Marines exchanged confused looks before Wilkes spoke up. "Listening to music?"

"Music? I do not hear music. Is it in your minds?"

Kincaid couldn't help but facepalm. Lelei had exhibited a remarkable habit of learning. Hell, she was talking to them in their own native tongue, if she couldn't put two and two together to figure out the cords were playing music in their ears, then something was amiss. Of course, Kincaid was more irritated that he was missing out on sleep.

So he did what he had to do. He slowly passed her his earbud. "Here put this in your ear."

The young sorceress took the ear bud, looking at it with curious eyes before slipping it into her ear. No sooner had she done so and Kincaid hit the play button, she began looking around the bus. Her eyes darted to and fro as she tried to find the source of the strange sounds coming into her ear. She slipped into her native tongue as she voiced her growing concerns.

"Where are they? These voices I am hearing?"

That had been the final nail in the coffin for the two Marines, their eyes beginning to water as they laughed hard. By now, the rest of the bus's occupants were looking at the scene unfolding, those who understood what portable music technology was merely shook their heads. Those that didn't thought Wilkes and Kincaid had put Lelei under some sort of spell.

Eventually the two calmed down, Kincaid taking the lead this time.

"No, it's music from our world. You can listen to it anytime, anywhere."

Lelei's eyes grew wider as she tried to comprehend what she was hearing. "You captured the souls of musicians and put them into an eternal state of servitude? What manner of magic is this?"

Wilkes shook his head, "No, it's not common magic. It's Blaaack Magi-"

Kincaid promptly interrupted Wilkes before he could fill the poor girl's head with lies. "No, it's not magic, it's technology. We've harnessed the ability to record music and play it whenever we want."

"Record? Technology?"

Kincaid facepalmed again. Not only was he not getting sleep, but now he had to explain the concept of MP3's.

So much for a relaxing trip.

 _I left three days ago_

 _but noone seems to know I've gone_

* * *

 **GINZA DISTRICT, TOKYO JAPAN, GATE CHECKPOINT, 0900 HOURS  
**

"Talk about spooky huh? This whole damn area was just shut down for the gate?"

"Yeah seems that way, I mean would you want to be selling little girl Manga with a giant inter-dimensional warp gate next to you?"

"Well, I dunno it is the Japanese. If anything, it might actually increase sales."

Jackson rolled his eyes as he listened to Roger and Heidegger go back and forth, even in the warmth of the SUV they just couldn't be content. It had been like this for a few hours. After their team's SUVs pulled into the small DMZ surrounding the gate, it had been a long period of twiddling thumbs with the occasional stepping outside to have a cigarette.

Then again they did arrive almost an hour early.

"So, Jackson. I didn't know your boy was going to be one of the Marines coming through."

Jackson looked towards the back of the SUV at Roger, the younger agent raising an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, well he is."

Heidegger chuckled from the back as he gazed out his own window "Oorah."

Like Jackson and his son, Heidegger had a history of his own in the Marines, eight years in First Force Reconnaissance.

In fact, most of DS's agents did.

It made sense, after years of military service, many veterans simply didn't know what else they were good at. Some tried their hand at college, others went into the labor force, but a great majority often wound up doing things they felt most comfortable with.

That was where Diplomatic Security came in, the organization itself had a habit of employing veterans. That military service, familiarity with order and discipline, it made for an agent that could easily adapt and possibly even perform above and beyond their position. So it was also no mere coincidence that a great majority of the agents on this detail were, in fact, former Marines.

Including Chuck, even if he was an admin Marine.

Whether you were in or out, "Once A Marine Always A Marine." These agents would protect their brothers just as fiercely as they would if they were serving right along beside them. They would also be there to greet them with open arms, maybe even share a beer and a story or two if time allowed.

Tradition and the Warrior Ethos demanded that.

Which was why this detail had been handpicked for this occasion. Though primary mission was the protection of the ambassador during his meeting that would occur later on, the guests he would be meeting along with others were deemed just as important to protect.

"So how long has it been since you've seen him last?"

Jackson gazed out the front window, not removing his sight from the gate itself. Occasionally he'd check his watch, his team was early but that was fine. They prided themselves on punctuality.

"Jackson?"

He regained his focus at the sound of Chuck's voice, not removing his gaze from the gate. "About three months ago." Jackson slowly pointed at the gate. "And it wasn't for long, I only got to see him drive off into that, and behind a television screen."

Roger whistled. "Must've been one hell of a sight, tanker right?"

"Yeah."

Roger whistled again as he gazed out his own window. "M1A1 Abrams, mean girl right there. I never got to see em too much, but I remember it was always awesome when I did."

Heidegger chuckled. "You have no idea man, I did a couple combined arms training exercises with em out in Mojave. They're fast, mean, and by god are they quiet as far as tanks go. They're tough too, I saw one take an RPG in Fallujah right to the front of the turret. Wasn't anything more than a black smudge, the guy who fired the damn thing was misted almost immediately after."

He looked out the front window at the gate. "Whoever is on the other side? Whoever decided to start all this commotion? I can assure you they're really feeling the pain."

All the agents chuckled. "Rah".

Before the conversation could continue, Chuck's voice came over the net and through one of the SUV's dash mounted walkie-talkies.

"Room One this is Room Two, be advised Japanese Public Safety has arrived on site over."

Sure enough, an inconspicuous black four-door Toyota came through the smaller guardhouse gate. It pulled up towards one of the closed down stores and parked itself, letting its engine run.

"Damn, what the hell kinda hoopdy is that? I mean I thought the Japanese would be rolling around in sleeked up SUV's or fancy sedans."

Jackson looked back at Roger with a look that said "Shut up" before picking up one of the walkie-talkies.

"Solid Room two."

He changed a channel on one of the radios, "Hotel Five, this is Room One, be advised Japanese Public Safety has arrived on site."

"Solid Room One, Hotel Five copies all."

Jackson returned the radio to its proper place and folded his arms, now they just had to wait for the bus.

Wait for his son.

"Man, count on the Japanese to be late to their own party."

"Roger?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

"My bust."

Then something had dawned on Jackson, there was one passenger who had remained quiet throughout the trip and subsequent arrival. Jackson hadn't given it too much thought, his mind was wired from all the thoughts running through his mind. The passenger in question sat in the very back of the SUV and unlike the agents, she was here for an entirely different purpose.

Evidently one of the Marines coming through was a father, Elton, one of Kincaid's fellow tankers. So as a surprise, this woman was given an all expense paid ticket to fly out to Japan with her daughter.

Elton's daughter.

Jackson looked back at her as he gave a thumbs up."Ma'am? How are you feeling?"

She snapped out of whatever daze she was in as she looked back at Jackson, her eyes brimming with anticipation. Meanwhile, her daughter continued to nap bundled up in a pink jacket and small jeans. Jackson knew there was a good chance this little girl had no idea she had came all this way just to see her dad.

Jackson paused for a moment to remember how his children used to react when he came home unexpectedly, how they would run into his arms with his wife watching all the while.

Memories from happier times.

"I..I'm not quite sure."

Jackson gave a warm smile. "No worries ma'am, I know that feeling. They should be here anytime no-"

Suddenly, the driver tapped Jackson on the shoulder and pointed towards the gate. The doors had begun to slowly open.

 **XXXXXXX**

Kincaid had finally finished explaining what MP3's were to a now head bobbing Lelei as the literal light at the end of the tunnel began to glow brighter. He paused for a moment and like everyone else strained his neck as he tried to look towards the front of the bus and out the front window.

They had finally arrived.

After what had felt like a lifetime in a world where every fantasy stereotype was very much real, the thought of returning to the modern world was a refreshing one.

Well, modern Japan at least.

The light finally engulfed them and they were out of the gate, everyone immediately looked out their windows taking in the sights of the large buildings surrounding the gate's entrance.

Things had changed quite a bit since the Japanese and American forces had first gone through, the block surrounding the gate was effectively walled off and shut down. All the buildings had thick bars covering their entrances, a safety measure if things went south. Neither the Americans nor the Japanese wanted civilians to be put in harms way.

They also needed complete control of anything coming or going, and it showed. A few MP's from both countries manned guard posts and a Japanese Type 89 sat off to the side on permanent standby.

A little extra firepower never hurt after all.

Meanwhile, the Special Region representatives gazed out their windows awestruck. They had never seen such buildings before, even the capital wasn't as densely built up. Rather than narrow market streets and mazes of alleyways, here there was a sense of order, a process to how people traveled.

Eventually, the bus pulled off to the side, it brakes hissing as it engaged its parking brake.

Time to get off.

One by one everyone grabbed anything they had brought with them, covers were donned and jackets were fastened, it was cold outside after all. Out of all the Special Region representatives, Tuka seemed to have been the only one who prepared for the visit.

Or at least, someone helped her prepare, the wool sweater she wore was no doubt another gift from the Japanese. As for her "Partners", they would just have to make due with what they had on. Slowly but surely they began to disembark from the bus, entering the cold mid-morning air.

Once everyone was out, Itami and Aldritch talked with their ranking subordinates. The general plan was laid out before they made their way over towards one of the guard posts, and a suspicious trio of individuals. No one had paid them any mind at first, they had all been too busy processing the wide variety of thoughts running through their minds.

But now that the initial rush had worn off, all eyes had fallen on the trio, strange considering they had failed to notice the two black SUV's sitting off next to a street corner.

Aldritch raised an eyebrow at the three men as Itami and he made their way over. Hopefully, Itami knew who these people were, Aldritch certainly wasn't coming to any conclusions. It didn't help that one of them was wearing a thick trench coat and had a weird shady looking Afro.

Intelligence spooks perhaps? Hell of an odd bunch if they were.

Finally after a moment of awkward silence, the man in the trench coat stepped forward eyeing Itami with a look of contempt. Thankfully, the man began speaking in English, no doubt out of courtesy for Aldritch.

"Lieutenant Itami?"

Itami raised an eyebrow, clearly he didn't know who this man was. "That's me."

"Agent Komakado, Intel HQ sent me here to escort you throughout your visit."

By now the rest of the group had made their way over and listened in on the conversation, curiosity killed the cat after all.

Itami folded his arms. "You with Public Safety?"

Komakado couldn't help but chuckle as he reached into his coat, pulling out a small notebook and flipping through a few pages. "Well, that's a hero's sixth sense for you eh?"

Definitely an intelligence spook, Aldritch looked at Rory and then back at Komakado. If Japanese public safety was so squared away, then why didn't they seem to understand a demigod was here visiting? Or any of the other unique girls that had come through for that matter. Maybe they did and just didn't want to divulge the information so freely?

Either way, there was only three of them, neither Aldritch nor any of the Marines were particularly impressed. Either the Japanese simply didn't expect anything to go down, or their method of security was a lot more lax. It also didn't help that Kincaid was reminded of Spike Spiegel the moment he saw Komakado, a joke that amused Benitez greatly upon Kincaid whispering it to him.

"See You Space Cowboy" indeed.

The group tried to listen in as Komakado continued in Japanese. "I looked into you Itami, you had the second lowest grades in your class during officer training and only avoided last place because another trainee got injured."

If the Marines could understand what Komakado had been saying, they probably would've been having second thoughts about Itami right now. As he continued, they could only assume that whatever he was saying certainly wasn't friendly.

Itami certainly didn't look all that happy.

As Komakado continued talking to Itami, Benitez tapped Kincaid on the shoulder and gestured towards the two SUV's parked behind at the street corner.

Their engines had been running the whole time.

"Ey, bro? What's with the suspect looking trucks?"

Kincaid looked back at the SUVs, raising an eyebrow. "Dunno man, probably security vehicles. They remind me a lot of the kind my dad used to drive when he'd go to work."

He paused a moment and looked at the passenger's side window of the lead SUV. "In fact they're almost completely identical."

Before he could turn back around and dismiss the notion from his mind, he heard the vehicle's doors open. Whoever the occupants were must have decided that now was a good a time as any to make their presence known.

Kincaid watched as the passenger door he had been staring at opened to its limit, whether whoever was inside was being deliberate or hesitant he couldn't be sure.

He soon figured out why, as a man emerged and straightened his suit, Kincaid's heart skipped a beat.

His father was here.

Kincaid was at a loss for words as his father and two other men dressed in similar suits made their way over towards the group, their eyes hidden behind black Oakley glasses. By now some of the group had noticed he was facing in the opposite direction. At first, they had merely assumed he was being his usual self. Once they saw the men arriving they soon understood why.

And the first thing they noticed, was that the man leading the group was almost identical to Kincaid. Of course, before they could even begin to formulate an opinion, a voice cried out.

Shino's.

"What!? Somebody like him is Special Forces and a Ranger!?"

Then everything happened in a flash. No sooner had Shino finished yelling the three newcomers had immediately ran over, putting themselves between the Marines and everyone else.

"U.S. Diplomatic Security! Make way!"

If everyone wasn't confused before, they certainly were now. Not only did one of these men look almost exactly like Kincaid, but now he and his comrades had their hands on holsters and making things escalate far beyond what they really were.

Things were quiet for a few moments before the Kincaid lookalike assessed the situation, slowly calming down as he noticed everything was in the clear. As he did so, Komakado scoffed.

"Americans, always overreacting to the smallest of situations."

The man who was in charge of the newcomers, or whom everyone assumed was in charge, promptly reached under his coat and pulled out a badge. If anyone could see under his dark shades, they would've noticed he was glaring at Komakado.

"Special Agent Jackson Kincaid, from one security agency to another I'd expect a little more understanding in situations such as this."

He slowly returned his badge to its rightful place. "You must be Agent Komakado, You'll have to excuse our 'Overreacting', it pays to be prepared for any situation."

Komakado merely scoffed at this remark, in truth he had long been briefed that this would be a joint security assignment.

He promptly turned around and eyed the Marines, Kincaid in particular. "Especially when our service members are involved...when my _**son**_ is involved."

Father and son stood there for a few moments, ignoring the surprised looks on everyone's faces. It wasn't the first time they had been separated for a long period of time, as a family with a history of government service they understood these sort of sacrifices.

Jackson eyed Kincaid for a few moments before outstretching a hand. "Son."

Kincaid looked back at his father, doing the same. "Dad."

They both firmly shook hands for a few moments before pulling each other in for a hug, professionalism or not they were still father and son. Family always came first, and the bond they shared was a strong one.

"Welcome back son."

"Dad.."

After a few moments, they stopped, Jackson turning around and straightening his suit and motioning to his comrades. "This is Agent Heidegger and Agent Roger. Like Agent Komakado, our team was assembled to ensure the safety of both our own and all of you as well. On behalf of the United States of America, welcome back to Earth."

Heidegger and Roger merely nodded before Jackson outstretched a hand to Itami. "You must be the Hero of Ginza, Lieutenant Youji was it? We've heard a lot about you over in my department. The man who rides atop tanks in his civilian attire. Welcome back."

Itami looked at Kincaid then back at Jackson, so this was his father. He hadn't heard Kincaid talk much about him. Save for a few scant conversations they had in passing. In fact, he knew little next to nothing about the man. But if Kincaid himself was anything to go off of, then surely his father was a man of the same caliber.

Itami smiled warmly and gave Jackson a firm handshake. "Nice to meet you, your son and his crew have been a valuable asset to our operations on the other side. I can see who he takes on after."

Jackson merely nodded before ending the handshake and looking at the Special Region representatives, he didn't know what language they spoke but he greeted them all the same.

"Well, I'm sure all of you must have a million and one different questions about our world here. Well, Japan that is, I'm not well versed in how they do business around here. But I'm sure Lieutenant Youji here and his men will show you around. Hopefully, the Marines have been acting professionally in your world."

The Special Region representatives looked at Jackson with confused looks, clearly they hadn't understood him.

All except for one, however.

Lelei promptly walked forward, eyeing Jackson with the same curious eyes she always had.

"Thank you for your hospitality. Your Marines, as well as the Japanese, have been very professional in how they conduct business. We look forward to learning more about them and this world."

Jackson and the other agents did a double take, they hadn't figured any of the other world's guests could even speak their language. Once they suspended their disbelief, Jackson turned his attention to Elton.

"Elton?"

Elton smirked and gave Jackson a handshake, countless visits to Kincaid's home back in Maryland had made the two familiar with each other, Wilkes included.

"What's up papa Kincaid? How's work been treating ya?"

Jackson finished the handshake and looked back at the lead SUV, nodding his head. "Not bad, it's about to get pretty fulfilling though."

"Why's that?"

Jackson gestured towards the lead SUV. Another agent had opened the rear passenger door and lowered one of the seats. As he stood off to the side and clasped his hands behind his back, the unthinkable happened.

Out came a small girl, she couldn't have been any older than three to those who didn't know her. She looked like she had just woken up from a nap, but once she looked at the group and saw Elton, her face lit up with a joy words simply couldn't describe. She outstretched her arms and tried to do an awkward trot over towards the group.

"Daddy!"

Elton froze for a moment, his eyes going wide as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing, once his wife exited the vehicle all his composure was lost.

"A-Abigail!?"

Elton pushed his way through the group and ran towards his daughter, taking a knee to scoop her up off the ground and hold her close. Tears streamed down his face as he outstretched an arm for his wife to join them.

A lot had happened in the span of a few minutes; between the arrival through the gate, Shino's outburst, Kincaid's father arriving and now Elton reunited with his family. There was a wide variety of emotions going through everyone. The women from the Special Region, in particular, had learned a lot about the strange men from this world so far, but to see them among their kin?

It made them realize that perhaps these people truly weren't that different, sure they had come with their contraptions and strange habits, but in the end, they were still normal people. Normal people with families, homes, aspirations in life.

Even the representatives from RCT3 had learned something about the Marines they had been working alongside. Despite all the violence they had partaken in and their wild reckless nature. They were still young men, brash sure, but young men with hearts all the same.

Everyone had come together in a very big way today, but this was only the beginning of their visit. The Diet and who knew what else was still waiting for them.

As Elton calmed down, he looked back at Jackson, wiping tears from his eyes as he held Abigail close.

"You're good people Jackson, I..I don't have any words right now. Thank you."

Jackson merely gave a thumbs up and smiled, "Just doing my job."

He returned his attention to everyone else, Komakado in particular. "Right then, we were briefed that the Diet summons are being conducted at 1500."

Jackson looked at his watch for a few moments and then back at Komakado, "I've got the time right now as 1000 hours, what's your people's plan?"

Komakado flipped through his notebook and stopped at a page, "Nothing in particular agent Jackson, was there something you had in mind?"

Jackson fixed his sunglasses before regarding everyone, "You guys have anything to eat?"

A few confused looks were exchanged between all parties involved before Jackson chuckled, "Right then, how's about we get them somewhere to eat? The last thing we need is them falling over at the Diet."

Komakado returned his book back to its place under his coat before shrugging, "I don't see anything wrong with that."

"Well then? Sound good to all of you?"

There were a few awkward moments as translations were carried out, once everyone was on the same page a few nods of approval came forth. Seeing that everything was in order, Jackson looked at Aldritch.

"Lieutenant Aldritch? You and the Marines will be riding with us, we've got plenty of room in the truck. You guys got any bags?"

Aldritch took a step forward and nodded. "Yeah just a few sea bags, you got room for those?"

Jackson looked back at the second SUV, muttering a few words as he tapped his earpiece. A few moments went by before he rolled his eyes and tapped his earpiece again. Whoever was on the other line clearly wasn't in agreement, but after Jackson looked at the SUV with a face that said "Throw me a bone here", everything seemed to resolve themselves.

The other SUV merely flashed its high beams a few times before two agents emerged from the driver and passenger doors. Making their way over towards the bus, they grabbed a few of the sea bags that had been placed on the outside, promptly taking them back to their vehicle and pushing them into the back compartment.

With great difficulty.

Once that was all said and done, Jackson clasped his hands together. "Right, let's go."

Everyone began to shuffle around, the Japanese and the Special Region representatives were to take the bus, the Marines in the SUV's.

Of course, not everyone was content with the arrangement.

Rory hummed a small tune to herself as she followed the Americans to the lead SUV, her halberd covered and resting over her shoulder. No one had paid her any mind until Roger turned around.

"Uh...Jackson?"

Once Jackson turned around and saw the oddly dressed Rory, he raised an eyebrow before looking at the Marines.

"Who's this?"

No sooner had the Marines noticed Rory was following them, they each looked at Jackson and began shaking their heads. Informing him that she was definitely not to ride with them at all.

After a few minutes of them arguing with the strange girl in a language Jackson had never heard before, she merely pouted and made her way back towards the bus, a nervous looking Itami waving from his window at the scene.

Jackson looked at Kincaid with a raised eyebrow, "What the hell was all that about?"

Kincaid merely shook his head, "It's a long story dad, we'll tell you all about it during the drive."

* * *

 **TOKYO MARKET DISTRICT, 1100 HOURS**

After a few minutes of driving down the crowded streets of Tokyo, the mismatched convoy finally made its way to a market district. Parking had been a hassle, but after some badge-waving from both security agencies, everything was promptly solved.

There had been some confusion as to where exactly the group would eat, the Marines were absolutely hell-bent on getting "The good stuff" whereas the Japanese wanted "A taste of home". The Special Region representatives were too busy taking in all the strange sights around them, they had no idea what a "Fast food joint" was or anything else for that matter.

So, in the end, a simple compromise was made, the Japanese and the representatives would go to a local restaurant. Following that they were to a hit up a few clothing outlets, Tuka needed something more formal to wear. As for the Americans, they would do what they did best, go to places they were familiar with.

Such as Mcdonalds.

At least, that was what the plan was supposed to be, instead, it turned into a mix-matched group of individuals going every which way. This of course was nothing but a constant headache for both security agencies involved.

Kincaid rolled his eyes as took in the situation that was unfolding in front of him, all he wanted to do was sit down and enjoy a meal with his dad. Instead, Jackson and the other agents were too busy running around with Komakado's people.

Then of course, there was the circus going on all around him.

Wilkes and Shino were busy trying to steal each others food. Elton and his family were off at a separate table enjoying some alone time. Aldritch and Tomita were sitting with the royals discussing the finer points of chicken nuggets and what had to be Mcdonald's toys. Benitez was too focused on eating to say anything, and now Kurokawa was constantly riding Kincaid's ass about etiquette.

He couldn't help but imagine what kind of madness was going on with the others at the outlet stores.

"Jasper, you have something on your mouth."

"Easy, you might make a mess."

"Jasper."

"Jasper!"

Kincaid sighed and slowly turned his gaze towards Kurokawa, his eyes taking on a very tired appearance. She sat across from him at the table, thankfully Benitez was too busy to pay attention to the chastising. He sat off to the side, munching happily and occasionally looking at his phone.

"Mari...please. Can't a man enjoy the finer things in life? I'm trying to sit here and enjoy the tastes of home."

Kurokawa rolled her eyes as she took a sip from her bottled water. "I'm not stopping you, but you're in your service uniform. I would think you'd be a little bit more careful."

Kincaid looked down at his lap, he ran his eyes up as he checked every spot on his uniform.

Everything was fine, Kurokawa was chastising him for the sake of doing it. Kincaid began to believe she actually enjoyed doing this.

"Geez, you know what? I'm calling you mom from now on."

Kurokawa glared at him, her eyes piercing his very soul. "Don't..you...dare."

He put on a smug look, taking a french fry and eating it before he poured fuel on the proverbial fire.

"Don't dare what?.. _ **Mom**_."

If it wasn't for the fact that they were out in public, Kincaid surmised that Kurokawa would have jumped on the table and gotten into a fist fight with him. Thankfully, that wasn't the case, so instead she merely sighed and tried to change the subject.

"So your dad, he's a federal agent? That's...surprising to say the least."

"Yeah, it's a family thing. Most of us have served in some capacity or another."

Kincaid took a sip from his large soda, savoring the taste of home for a moment before continuing. "It's wild though, I guess they must've pulled him from Sudan for this assignment. Didn't think they'd go that far."

"Really? What was he doing in Sudan?"

Kincaid shrugged. "Beats me, there's a lot of shit he just doesn't tell me...actually, he often does but I just forget."

By now Wilkes had finally won whatever contest he was in against Shino, evidently he had been listening in on the conversation. "Papa Kincaid is an assassin."

Kincaid looked at one of the adjacent tables, raising an eyebrow at Wilkes. "He's not an assassin bro, he's like what. Forty-six years old? He's too old to be doing that shit."

"Bullshit, that nigga is strapped. I seen the photos you showed me of him in Afghan with that gear n' shit on. Fucker's swole too."

During the pair's conversation, Wilkes had failed to notice that Shino had stolen one of his fries. She quickly scarfed it down before chiming in.

"It's unbelievable, who would've thought Itami was special forces? I just don't get it."

Kincaid shrugged as he took another sip from his soda, "Eh, you'd be surprised. When we worked with MARSOC over at FOB Rob, those guys were really laid back. In fact, that's usually how a lot of guys do business. The sane minded ones that is."

Kurokawa and Shino exchanged curious looks, weren't Marines usually the ones trying to be the biggest men in the room?

Seeing their expressions, Wilkes piggybacked off what Kincaid had said. "It's hard to explain yo, it's just how it is for us. We try to stay chill, if people ask us what we do? We tell them other besides that we just keep to ourselves.

Wilkes chuckled as he looked at Shino, "Unlike some peop-"

He promptly grunted as Shino gave him a gut punch under the table, one of the many he had received during the time both groups had been working together. The group broke into laughter at the scene and resumed normal conversations.

Eventually, all eyes went to the front of the restaurant as Jackson and the other agents arrived.

It was time to go.

* * *

 **IN TRANSIT TO THE DIET**

Kincaid looked out his window as the convoy stopped, he looked around for a few moments, were they already there?

"Hotel Five this is Room One, be advised the VIP's have arrived at the Japanese senate. Rooms Two and Three are peeling off to oversee their delegations with the Japanese and Ambassador Kroger."

"Hotel Five copies all."

Kincaid listened in as Jackson conversed with his superiors over the SUV's radio. Sure enough, Pina and Bozes could be seen disembarking from the bus with Tomita and Shino. As the convoy began to continue on its journey, he noticed that the other SUV remained behind, slowly turning into the senate's parking lot.

"So...we're getting in on the politics too?"

Aldritch spoke forward from the back of the SUV as he addressed Jackson.

"Yeah, that's the idea. Ambassador Kroger was at our embassy in Ginza during the initial attack, so it's been decided that he'll be representing us during whatever talks are going to go down."

"Well, hopefully that all goes down well. Princess Pina is pretty young as far as leaders go, hopefully she'll be alright."

Jackson looked in the rear view mirror at the young tank officer, "I'm sure things will go smooth. Kroger's a good man, I'm sure he just wants answers, hell everyone does."

"Can't say I blame him."

Things were quiet for a few moments until Roger cleared his throat. "So...this other world? What's it like?"

Kincaid didn't remove his gaze from the window as he stared at the various buildings and streets they passed. His mind raced over all the events they had been through so far; the first fight, the dragon, Rory, Italica, Aurea, all of them.

He also thought about the events that were yet to come.

"Different...really different."

Throughout the conversation, Elton had been off in his own world. Abigail sitting on his lap, his wife firmly wrapping an arm around his. All the same, he felt like he had to voice his own opinion.

"It's a real roller coaster of stuff, honestly? I don't know even know where we could begin."

Things were quiet once more as everyone took in the information, for the agents and Elton's family, this was their first glimpse of just where the Marines had been. They knew little next to nothing outside what little information leaked out from various news sources.

Kincaid looked up at the rear view mirror. "I'll say this dad, it's not like Afghanistan...not like Afghanistan at all. Take the Afghan people, remove all forms of real technology, throw some hardcore religions in, different species, and a way of life that has never been challenged. That's the other world for you."

At this remark Roger, raised an eyebrow. He had never even deployed before, and now he was hearing about other species? He really couldn't comprehend it at the moment.

Nobody really could, hell the tankers themselves still had trouble from time to time.

"Well, I'll say this. They don't learn, they just don't learn. I don't get it; helicopters, tanks, jets, goddamn special forces. What's it gonna take?"

Things went back to being quiet for a few moments before Jackson responded, looking back at Wilkes. "If we were invaded by someone or something technologically superior to us. Would you give up?"

Wilkes pondered for a moment, looking around at the other Marines for a few moments.

"True..."

Then they saw it, the massive building that served as the Japanese Diet. Kincaid suddenly felt really nervous, and for good reason.

Like the rest of his crew, he was an enlisted man. Large public speeches weren't what he was meant for. Especially public speeches that may or may not try to incriminate him and his fellows.

His moment of thought was interrupted as he felt a hand reach around and pat him on the knee.

"You guys will be fine, don't let it get to your heads. You think Dakota Meyer was nervous when he got the Medal of Honor? Or anyone else?"

"That's different dad, that was an honor's ceremony."

Kincaid watched at the building grew closer and closer, "This isn't an honor's ceremony...not even close."

Jackson sighed, his son was right. There was a large majority of people that didn't want him or any of his fellow Marines there, or anyone else besides Japan for that matter.

And that wasn't just a great deal of Japan's thoughts on the matter either. There were plenty of other countries watching the Marines, watching America.

Waiting for them to slip up.


	19. You Asked, So We Answered

**Woo lad...Christ was this one hell of a wild ride. This right here, the one chapter I had been fearing the most since the moment I started writing this story.**

 **But we're here and the show must go on!**

 **Let me start by saying that NONE of this chapter would be possible without the help of my beta reader and good friend Kochi, seriously, this man has been a godsend both here and earlier on in my story.**

 **Ya'll know politics ain't my thing...but it's certainly his, so a big thanks to him for staying up every night till Three AM with me. The wait and suspense leading up to us getting this out was aggravating.**

 **So..Here We Go Again**

* * *

 **Chapter 17: You Asked, So We Answered**

 _"_ _A Marine should be sworn to the patient endurance of hardships, like the ancient knights; and it is not the least of these necessary hardships to have to serve with sailors._ "

Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery

 **DECEMBER 14TH, 1000 HOURS, EN ROUTE TO CAMP ALNUS, SPECIAL REGION**

* * *

 **Ambient Album of Awesome  
**

 **Track 22: Jormungand "Mad Symphony"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

"Why the _**fuck**_ are we goin this way? Isn't this the longer route?"

"Jesus, Boyd. Can't you stop your belly aching and just enjoy the scenery? We're just making sure everything is kocher, no one's really taken this route yet. Two birds with one stone you know?"

"Enjoy the scenery... sure as shit ain't Georgia. Now that's some scenery."

"Whatever.."

Van Hauser looked out his window at the passing countryside, occasionally glancing at his side view mirror at the rest of the convoy. A long line of MRAPs and Japanese Komatsu's maintained speed and dispersion, their tires kicking up dirt and dust as they went.

Hours prior, his unit had been given the order to head back to Alnus. They were going to set up shop at Italica, and needed to pick up supplies.

This also meant they'd need to retrieve all their personal items as well as anything uselful they had left back there. The defense of Italica had been, understandably, last minute. No one had any idea what the aftermath would be, and they certainly didn't think they'd be establishing a substantial presence there.

Not that Van Hauser was complaining. He was anticipating his return to Alnus; a certain someone was waiting for him. A certain someone he had a gift to give.

It was a strange thing, the idea of developing feelings for someone so fast was almost worrisome for the lieutenant. Especially someone who wasn't even human to begin with.

His parents would definitely lose their minds if they heard about this.

Here he was on a "Deployment", a deployment very much off the beaten path, but one none the less. Generally speaking, Marines didn't go off to fight expecting someone special to be dropped in their path. They didn't go off to places like Europe to go liberate people from tyranny anymore, or get to be looked at as heroes coming in to "Save the day."

They had gone to the Middle East, they were looked at as invaders, white infidels from foreign lands, fighting for a cause they didn't even understand. Such was the "War on Terror".

But here, things were different. They were looked at as heroes, saviors from unknown lands, an opportunity for knowledge and growth. Some were even seen at as gods, bringing thunder and fire to smite their enemies.

The Marines liked this.

William liked this.

When his squad had saved those slaves, and seen the tears of joy in their eyes, it almost overwhelmed them. For once they knew what their purpose was, they didn't have any doubts in the back of their minds.

They were going to bridge two worlds together. And he was going to do the same with her.

"Sweet sweet fantasy baby! When I close my eyes you come and you take me!"

Van Hauser rolled his eyes. Boyd had been sitting behind him, watching his smile grow at his previous thoughts. He chuckled as he continued his jokes.

"I want chicken! I want liver! William, William please deliver!"

By now the driver, a young Lance Corporal, had been trying his best to not laugh. Boyd's last line had robbed him of his bearing however, and he was now joining in the laughter spreading throughout the Humvee. If their turret gunner and sleeping fourth occupant had heard the joke, they certainly weren't reacting.

Van Hauser shook his head, not removing his gaze from the passing scenery. "Look, you heathens, just cause I'm not ugly as sin like the rest of you, doesn't meant you can rain on my parade." He flashed the driver a glare.

"And you, shit stick? You're a couple years too early to be joining in on the fun. So why don't you focus on driving?" He paused for a split sencond. "Boot."

"..Aye sir."

Boyd leaned forward into the driver's cabin and put on his best shit eating grin. "Aww c'mon now William, no need to get all defensive about it. It's just good ole fashioned fun."

Van Hauser reached around and gave Boyd a playful shove back into his seat. "Yeah? Like the good ole fashioned family fucking you're into?" Boyd rolled his eyes and put a dip in. He savored the taste a few moments before spitting into an empty water bottle he brought along.

"Listen man, I don't understand why you keep using that as a comeback. That's a misconception and you goddamn know it."

"Oh? Then why are you getting so butt hurt about it?"

"I'm not getting butt hurt."

"Yes you are."

"Am not!"

"Butt hurt like your sister after a family function."

"Damnit man, cut that shit out. What? Do I gotta go chasing a dog girl or some shit? Conform to your furry ways? You know I ain't on that incest shit."

Van Hauser chuckled. "One, I'm not a fur fag. Two, you're getting redder than a goddamn bratwurst. And three, hush your mouth about Felicia. I never put your shit out there whenever I had to cover for your ass."

He pointed at the driver. "You don't utter a word about any of this."

The driver continued to focus on the road. "Any of what?"

"Precisely."

Meanwhile, Boyd spit into his bottle before responding. "Fine, fuck it."

Things were quiet for a few moments, the only sound coming from the truck's heavy tires chewing up the dirt road.

"...Boyd."

"...What?"

"Heh, love you bro."

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

Van Hauser leaned into his seat some more, stretching his legs out. "Eh, besides, it's not like I'm the only one. You saw the goddamn tankers guffawing at the maids back at Italica. I'm telling you, man, it's gonna get real dicey while we're here. Hopefully they can keep that shit under wraps."

Before the conversation could go on any further, one of the dashboard mounted radios began to blare to life. "Hey, anyone else seeing smoking coming up from our due east?"

Van Hauser lowered his window and aimed his carbine out, sighting in through his RCO. Sure enough, he could see dark pillars of smoke rising up into the sky. With his non firing hand, he reached around and grabbed one of the handsets.

"This is vehicle three, we got eyes on it too."

Boyd leaned to his window stared at the smoke for a moment. "Yeah, no way that's chimneys either. Too big for that."

There was silence for a few moments before one of the convoy commanders came over the net, "Just got word from Alnus Main, be advised that smoke is coming up in direct vicinity of a...Burglen village according to the maps. They want us to go check it out."

One by one, each vehicle rogered up the net, and the entire convoy began to shift its direction towards the village.

Boyd raised an eyebrow. "Didn't a Jap recon team clear that shit out?"

Van Hauser returned the handset back to its proper place before checking his ammo and gear. "Yeah they did, two days ago I think."

"The fuck? Why didn't they stay there?"

"Beats me man, guess they had more important shit to worry about? Maybe they just forgot?"

Boyd racked the charging handle on his DMR before rolling his eyes, "The goddamn Japs want to control the area, but aren't going out of their way to fucking do so. Sure are doing their damndest to get cozy with the locals though. Actions speak louder than words..fucking Nips."

Van Hauser flashed a glare back at Boyd, "Hey, stow that shit, they're new to the game. That's why we're here, to help em out. Besides, we're getting just as cozy with the locals too. Everyone's growing a little complacent."

"Whatever man, I still don't fucking like em. The way some of 'em glare at us, like they have some sort of fucking problem? Don't ask for help if you're gonna turn around and start mean mugging us."

"Everyone does that, we're fucking Americans. Marines for that matter. Being suspicious of us is the trendy thing to do."

Hearing this back and forth, the driver voiced his concerns. "Sir, do people really not like us, even our allies? I thought we were on the same team."

Van Hauser shook his head. "Listen kid, one day you'll learn. There's been plenty of bad eggs that have ruined our image. Iraq and Afghan didn't help us either, you can thank the media for that."

Boyd chuckled as he put a hand on the driver's shoulder. "They hates us cause they ain't us. Course no one ever bitches when a MEU comes in off shore to help out. Don't sweat it, you just do you, bro. Let em think what they want, we always prove em wrong, anyways."

Van Hauser dropped his carbine's magazine, checking to make sure it was properly loaded. He then cleared his M203, it had been a while since he last used it, but better safe than sorry. Satisfied everything was in good order, he reached into his cargo pocket and popped a piece of gum in, chewing on it vigorously as the smoke grew in the distance.

 _Sorry sweetheart, just a little longer more._

"Hey Boyd."

"What?"

"You ever think some of em are just glaring at you because of your tendencies?"

"Fuck you man, they're more fucked in the head than I could ever be. You ever read their comics and shit? Downright disgusting shit there."

Van Hauser began to laugh. "About time you fucking confessed."

"Go to hell."

"Ladies first."

Things were quiet for a few moments before Van Hauser reached behind and smacked the sleeping Marine. He sputtered for a few moments, grabbing his SAW with wide eyes.

"W-what?! We bout to get some!?"

Van Hauser rolled his eyes, "Don't know, don't care. Just wanted you awake."

"Shit..."

* * *

 **1500, DIET BUILDING, WAITING ROOM**

Kincaid's leg twitched nervously as he sat in his chair. He would've been fine, at least if he was allowed a cigarette. But, of course, no such luxury was given to him or anyone in the group. Upon arriving at the Diet's back door, the marines were immediately whisked away and into the building, followed Itami's group.

No time for dawdling.

He sighed as he looked around. Scattered throughout the elaborate waiting room, the other Marines, refugees and Japanese soldiers waited patiently, occassionaly picking on some food from a nearby table.

Unfortunately for the tanker, Jackson and the other agents had long left to take care of god knows what. "Secret assassin shit" was what Wilkes had surmised it as.

Kincaid took notice of his surroundings for a few moments. Aldritch and Itami talking off to the side, no doubt about important officer stuff, the Marines chatting amongst themselves about all the libo plans they had, a curious Rory leaning in to eavesdrop, and Tuka and Lelei staring out one of the windows, still trying to comprehend the strange new world they were in.

It was one hell of a sight, but someone was missing.

Mari.

Kincaid didn't have to look long, however. Evidently, she had been leaning on a wall off to the side, keeping to herself and playing around with her phone. She glanced up to him for a second, meeting his nervous eyes.

Ever the medic and notional big sister, she just had to step in.

"Hey... You alright?"

Mari spoke in a hushed voice as she took up a chair next to Kincaid, a genuine look of concern on her face. "You look... pretty wired."

Kincaid gave a small thumbs up and sighed. "Who, me? Oh, I'm golden. I uh...just haven't spoken in front of a crowd before. I'm a tanker, not a talker."

Mari couldn't help but smile at this remark. "Not a talker? please, Jasper. You've run your mouth plenty of times since we've met... And plenty of times more than you need to, might I add. It's going to be fine. Besides, they'll probably just want to talk to Itami and your lieutenant. We're just troops. What do we know? We just follow orders."

Kincaid looked over at her, and raised an eyebrow. "See, that's just it. Nothing about this even feels remotely "fine". If they just wanted to talk to officers, then why bother bringing us along? In fact, why did they invite tankers in the first place? Doesn't that seem a little off to you? Tankers, the guys who'd be responsible for contributing the most to loss of life? We're the simple minded guys, our position does not really allow for deep thinking."

He paused for a moment, sighing. "They're gonna try to force answers out of us. For uncomfortable questions."

Mari raised an eyebrow. "How can you be so sure?"

Jasper rolled his eyes. The medic was being too optimistic for her own good. He slightly envied her confidence, but one thing was certain. The split in Japanese ideologies was going to be a problem, an obstacle that would take meticulous thinking and careful choice of words to overcome.

For what he understood, the Diet was torn between two sides. Some had nothing but favorable things to say about the United States, who praised the alliance and were thankful for their aid.

Others, however, wanted nothing more than to see them board their billion-dollar ships and leave. Recent events didn't help, either. After America's intervention in Ginza, nationalist groups crowded the streets in rage, taking advantage of their political influence to protest freely against the "abuse of the mutual security treaty".

In fact, as they were driving into the Diet building, the Marines spotted several black vans parked outside, covered in white Japanese letters and shouting what sounded like insults through a set of loudspeakers. A few elderly men were standing beside them, too, dressed like Yakuza gangsters and holding big Japanese flags.

They were Japanese ultranationalists, and If anything, they looked absolutely pissed.

Kincaid couldn't blame them. Those people looked old enough to have lived through WW2. Having two atomic bombs dropped on them, and foreign bases set up right on their own backyard was hardly something they would be fine with. Even with all the assistance the US had given post WW2, they had a reason to be angry.

Then, of course, were the multiple incidents of disorderly conduct from American troops in Okinawa. Another reason to hate the Marines.

The actions of a few often dictate image of many. The Middle East after Nine-Eleven is the perfect example. An entire generation of westerners will forever see the region as nothing more than the exporter of radical Islam, when, in fact, things couldn't be any further from the truth.

Jasper himself never hated the Muslims, nor did he ever judge the many by the actions of a few. Years of living overseas had robbed him of bigotry. He had met many different people, from many different backgrounds, religions and skin colours.

Even having lost a close friend and brother to the "Sand Lot", the tanker never held onto that anger. That day it was the enemy, nothing more. The ones attacked his tank probably didn't even know what ISAF was, or that there ever was a terrorist attack on America in 2001. All they saw were white invaders on their lands, who came from the sky.

Anyone who loved their land and people would fight for both. Afghanistan and Iraq were no exception, having done so many times in the past. So no, Kincaid could never judge an entire people based on minorities.

Yet, some Japanese apparently did.

In the end, Kincaid merely looked at Mari and sighed. "Call it a hunch. Not everyone is so thrilled about having tanks dropped into their city and making a mess of the place. Allies or not, we still barged in here."

Kincaid didn't notice it at first, but Mari had been staring directly into his eyes. She was giving him that look again.

Whatever she was about to say, however, was silenced by Jackson's words booming through the room. He walked into the small hall flanked by two agents, waving at the troops and refugees to come closer.

"Alright, looks like everything's all set up. They're waiting for you."

Aldritch and Itami merely nodded before looking at everyone else.

Showtime.

As everyone began to file out, Aldritch stopped his Marines, beckoning them to huddle around him. Once everyone else was out, he leaned in.

"Look, just let me do the talking alright? If for some reason they call any of you up, you answer their questions truthfully. But please, be tactful. They don't do things here the way we do them back home. Many of them don't even want us or their troops on the other side of that gate."

He paused a moment as he thought about what he was going to say next, "...Just be calm, be collected and above all." He glared daggers at Wilkes before continuing. "Don't. Fuck. This. Up."

The other Marines mirrored Aldritch's expression as they all turned their attention to Wilkes as well.

"What?...Yo, why ya'll lookin at me like that?"

"Lieutenant Aldritch?" Jackson leaned into the meeting room's door and tapped on his watch, "Everything good?"

Aldritch merely nodded. "Yep, just clearing some last minute things."

With that, the Marines filed out of the room. As they traveled down a series of twisting hallways, Kincaid lagged behind to walk in step with his father, his eyes occasionally taking note of the elaborate carpeting and various Japanese paintings on the walls.

"I'm nervous."

Jackson put a hand on his son's shoulder, giving a small affirming squeeze in an attempt to ease his worries. "I know son, just focus, alright? You know what you have to do. I'm not going to brow beat you about it, you're a grown man and you know how to conduct yourself as a Marine. An NCO, no less."

The pair took a turn and walked down a long hallway. At the end of it, the rest of the group stood waiting to be called into the conference room, with two Japanese men standing on the sides of a big wooden door.

Halfway down, Jackson stopped his son, turning to face him. "This is as far as I can go, the other agents and I will be out in the stands."

He put his hands on both of Jasper's shoulders, looking over his uniform. "Look at you, it feels like just yesterday you and I were running early in the mornings to get you prepped for your enlistment."

Jackson held back a tear. He and his son hadn't always been on the best of terms, the result of being a young Marine father, torn between the new world of parenting and service to his country. With a shaky marriage to boot, there had always been a sort of tear, no matter how much Kincaid wanted to look up to him. It wasn't until the divorce that they had grown closer, their time as a broken family warranted mending things.

"Now here you are about to go talking in front of the whole watching world. Heh, where did time go?"

Kincaid looked down. "C'mon dad, not here. If you start getting all emotional, you know I will too."

Jackson took a deep breath, letting go of his son's shoulders and taking a step back, smiling warmly all the while. "You're right, son. Look, you go out there and show 'em what we got, alright? We don't back down from shit, rah?"

Kincaid nodded, "Rah, Gunny."

"Damn right."

With that, Kincaid made his way over towards the others and away from his father. As he stood there with the rest of the group, his eyes met a few of theirs. Nothing needed to be said, too focused on the big talks ahead.

Well nothing important anyways.

"Yo...after this, who's trying to get some fucking Burger King?"

Everyone in the group looked back at Wilkes. How could he think of eating at a time like this?

"What?...Yo, why ya'll lookin at me like that? I'm fuckin hungry."

"Because bro..."

Kincaid put a hand on his shoulder. "Dog, when we're outta here, we're not just getting Burger King. We're gonna stuff our fucking faces."

Benitez put his hands together. "Amen to that brother!" Everyone else in the group who could understand English shook their heads.

Typical Marines.

Soon the Japanese agents brought a hand to their earpieces. Seconds later, they opened the doors, revealing an elaborate conference hall with an innumerable amount of people sitting in stands. They turned to the Marines and nodded.

Showtime.

* * *

 **0200 HOURS, KINCAID RESIDENCE, MARYLAND, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA**

Were this any normal night, Alice would've been long asleep. Gone were the days of wild partying till the early morning hours. She had grown older, and while she was hardly in her fifties, she still valued her beauty sleep.

But she had been waiting for this night, and like any good mother, her maternal instincts were kicked into overdrive. For good reason too.

Her son was about to be on live international television. She had long gotten the text from Jackson, stating his and the others' safe return through the gate. For her and the families of the other Marines, this would be their first time seeing them in months.

Janice flicked through a few TV channels before stopping on the one she had been searching for. The Marines and the others still hadn't made their way onto the stage, so she still had time.

Time to fetch Jasper's sister.

She hastily made her way out of the living room and up a small staircase, taking caution to not step on a small Jack Russel-Beagle mix sleeping on one of the steps. The small dog looked up for a few moments, her floppy ears drooping down as she cocked her head in curiosity. Whatever was going on demanded her attention, so like any dog, she quickly followed upstairs.

The odd pair made their way down a hallway before stopping at a closed door. Alice slowly opened it and made her way into the darkened room, then stopped and flicked a lightswitch before walking over her daughter's bed.

"Janice, sweetheart, wake up."

Alice nudged her daughter a few times, she being fast asleep and wrapped in thick blankets. Even with the heat in the house running at full, winter in Maryland was still tenacious. Finally, after a few more nudges, Janice finally yawned and grumbled as she began to toss and turn. She looked at her mother with sleep filled eyes, and rubbed them for a few moments before looking at a clock sitting on her nightstand.

"Mom? It's like... two o clock in the morning. Whaddya want?" she slurred as she stretched, still half-asleep- Much like her mother, Janice had long been home on holiday break. Not surprisingly, being awoken at this hour of the night had been odd, to say the least.

She smiled for a moment as her dog's curious head poked up over the edge of the bed, a common sight anytime she woke up. She ran a hand across the dog's small head as her mother began to talk, her excitement barely contained in her voice.

"It's Jasper! He's about to be on TV! Hurry up!"

As soon as Janice heard these words, she shot upright causing the dog to jump back out of reflex. "Jasper!?"

Like her mother, she had been worrying about her brother's situation day after day. She had long been writing letters to him, eagerly awaiting and cherishing every response.

Still, this wasn't new ground for her. They had danced this tune before, during his deployment to Afghanistan. She had worried then, and seeing her brother's tank get engulfed into the darkness of that gate had been the most gut wrenching moment of her life.

It was like he had been swallowed, up never to be spat out again. The only thing keeping her pushing on was the letters, and that tank he crewed. It had brought him back safely before, and she believed it would do so again.

What Janice hadn't known, however, was that her brother was in Japan, and about to be on television. In a split second she tossed her thick blankets aside, fetched a robe from her closet and was followed her mother downstairs, the dog following with equal haste.

Once the trio made their way into the living room, they took up spots on the couch, the dog sitting in between them and alternating between looking at her two masters. They watched the television's screen with anticipation as a Japanese announcer began to speak, with hastily written subtitles underneath.

"It's been four months since the Ginza incident, and the first Q and A session about it is about to begin. In addition to the SDF personnel who've been on the ground, U.S. Marines who took action during the Ginza defense and refugees from the Special Region have been invited as well."

They watched as cameras focused on a stage at the forefront of a large audience. Countless Japanese officials sat watching and waiting as a pair of doors opened up at the far left of the stage.

Time seemed to stand still for a few moments, no doubt many around the world watching this felt the same way. The gate had been a hot topic of debate over the past months and for good reason.

As far as anyone was concerned, it had completely changed the agenda. Gone were the days of ISIS, Ukraine and other conflicts flooding the news. Now it was Gate this, and Gate that. Everyone wanted to know why. Why did the gate open up in Japan, of all places? Why did so many people have to die in such a short time?

And more importantly, where did the gate even come from?

As far as science was concerned, the Gate itself was impossible. Portals to other worlds had been the stuff of science fiction for years. Some even believed magic was involved. Many officials in various religious communities had even considered the gate a sign, be it good or ill. They looked at it as yet another act of divine will, a challenge for man to overcome, and prove ourselves against.

Either way, this conference was going to be the first real chance for anyone to get a glimpse of what is going on.

Both mother and daughter stared at the TV as a uniformed group began to walk into the conference room. They were led by a rather unkempt and tired looking man, with small, shiny golden ornaments on his olive drab uniform. No doubt he was an officer.

Next to him, a tall dark haired woman matched his step, dressed in similar, yet less adorned clothes. These were Japanese Self Defense Force, the soldiers Jasper had mentioned in his letters.

Alice studied them for a moment, taking particular note of how out of place they looked. The man had a small stubble growing on his chin, while the woman's hair was too long to be acceptable. She didn't know all that much of Japanese military regulations, but this was clearly against that of the Americans.

However, all thoughts on the JSDF vanished when three girls walked in. Everything about them felt off about them, from their outfits, to their very physical appearance.

One, no doubt the oldest of the three, had long blonde hair, and walked with a sort of exotic grace akin to that of models. Even in her business suit, she had a strange sort of allure to her, almost alien.

Behind her, a short girl garbed in strange robes followed closely. She carried a long staff, with what looked like a blue crystal adorning the top. What called Alice's attention the most, however, was her constant thousand yard stare, and what looked like natural gray hair.

That reminded her of something. There had been a time when Jasper went through a hair dying phase, back in the day when they all lived together.

Teenagers.

Finally, the third girl began to make her way onto the stage, her face covered behind a thick dark veil. Out of all three, she had the most outlandish look, the frilly black dress and ominous, dark vibes not helping her case at all.

And, of course, nor was the giant, cloth-wrapped pole she was carrying around, which sort of resembled a giant halberd. Who had allowed that in?

Janice rolled her eyes at this sight, "Oh great, I'm sure Jasper is doing just fine after all."

Alice couldn't help but chuckle. Six or seven years ago, this Goth girl would've been on the top of list of Jasper's preferences, if his previous escapades were any indication. Well, if she had been older, that is. Another phase he had outgrown, much like the hair dyeing.

Teenagers.

Suddenly, both Janice and Alice's heart rates sky rocketed, familiar faces had began to walk in.

The Marines.

Parker, Darian and George, Jasper's second family family. They were the men who kept him safe, and he, in turn, did the same for. In Alice's eyes, they were just as important to her as her son was. Her son, who just happened to be following in right behind them.

A mother's love is a powerful thing. To her, her children are the center of her universe, the lives she brought into the world. To take a mother's child away, throw him into a uniform and send them into harm's way is a pain words can't possibly describe.

In Alice's case Jasper had been her first born. He had gone through the early stages of shaky marriage right by her side, she watched him grow, always idolizing his father despite their shaky relationship. She still had the old Polaroids of Jasper wearing Jackson's oversized uniforms, a smile accompanying his mock salutes in all of them. She always had a feeling he would follow in his father's footsteps.

But it wasn't until Nine-Eleven that his fate had been sealed. On that day something changed inside him, even though he was only ten. Alice vividly remembered being at her friend's house in Jamaica, taking a small respite from her job in the embassy. Nobody was really sure what had happened, details flooding in had been far from concrete, with only one certain fact.

She rememberd Jasper had his eyes stuck on the television screen. He simply stood there, fixated on it as the footage came through, watching planes crashing into the towers repeat over and over again.

He stood there for a few moments more before turning around, staring at her with a blank expression. "Mom..? Why did this happen? What would make people do this? What did those people in the towers ever do?"

Alice had been sitting on a couch, a million thoughts racing through her mind as she was trying to process a way to best describe the tragedy.

"Honey... the world is not as friendly as we like to think. There are... there are bad people out there, people who hate our country, and are angry because we think different."

Jasper had just stood there for a few moments, trying to digest the information as best he could. He finally looked back at the screen, his mother's words echoing in his young mind. "That's not fair mom. They're not any better than bullies! I hate bullies, they deserve to get beat up and taught a lesson! I want to be someone who can stand up to them, I want to be someone like..."

Don't you say it...please don't say it.

"...Dad! A Marine!"

When Alice saw her son in his service uniform the first time in months, she began to break down into tears. It didn't matter how many times they had done this, it never got easier. Medieval world or not, he was still in harm's way, and she didn't like it. She wanted him out of the Marine Corps, she wanted him home, where he could be safe and go on to live a normal life.

Alice held Janice's hand, the two being thankful for seeing Jasper at all, watching him intently all the while as he made his way over to sit next to his fellow Marines.

But something wasn't right, and Janice was the first to notice.

"Mom, doesn't he look...off?"

Alice squinted at the screen for a few moments. Sure enough, she saw what her daughter was talking about. The expression on Jasper's face was different, it was the same one he had when he came back from Afghanistan. It was kind of expression that held back a great deal of stress, the kind of stress that came with being a tank crewman.

And having participated in heavy combat.

"Oh son... What did you do?"

 **XXXXXXX**

Janice and Alice weren't the only ones who recognized the faces of the Marines at the Diet. Throughout the United States and in various places around the world, another group of people reacted in their own way to seeing these men.

Servicemen, both old and current.

From those who were long out, and living comfortable lives, to those still in and stationed in any number of places around the world, they all watched and cheered. Beers were clanged together at bars, and platoons huddled around small televisions in tank maintenance bays. These men had served with their brothers at the Diet, a few of them even hailing from Delta Company.

There were even some who had no idea who these Marines were, and by sheer coincidence, just so happened to be flipping through channels, pausing to watch the event out of curiosity. Regardless of if they knew them or not, they were still brothers all the same, and that meant they deserved their attention.

By now, Ginza and the subsequent Gate incursion were common knowledge across various U.S. military branches, and for good reason. Everyone wanted a piece of the action, to go off into another world on some sort of adventure. This would be their first chance to get any information on what they were missing out on, and from none other than those who engaged the enemy first hand.

So like Janice, Alice, and everyone else, they too sat in silence as the introductions began.

* * *

 **JAPANESE DIET**

Aldritch and Itami made their way towards two podiums, straightening their uniforms before introducing both themselves and their subordinates in sequence.

"My name is Lieutenant James Aldritch, I am the current platoon commander for Headquarters Platoon, Second Tank Battalion, Charlie Company. Accompanying me are Corporals Parker Elton and Jasper Kincaid, Lance Corporal Darian Wilkes Jr and Private First Class George Benitez."

"I am Lieutenant Itami Youji, acting section commander in First Combat Brigade, Reconnaissance Company, Third Section. Accompanying me is Sergeant First Class Mari Kurokawa, our team's medic."

A Japanese official at a podium opposite to the stage merely nodded, "Thank you, Lieutenant Aldritch you may be seated. Lieutenant Itami please remain where you are."

Things were quiet as Itami remained behind his podium, the occasional camera snapping and a bright light flashing throughout the room. As he cleared his throat, the Marines and other guests looked out towards the front of the room. A female Japanese senator walked up, carrying a billboard under her arm.

Much like said billboard, she looked anything but promising. In fact, she had a look anyone who served in the military knew best.

Mud slinger. She was going to try and find fault in what they had been doing.

* * *

 **SPECIAL REGION RESIDENTS UNDER ALLIED CONTROL**

 **CIVILIAN CASUALTIES: ~90**

 **NUMBER OF CODA VILLAGE REFUGEES: 600**

 **REFUGEES ACCEPTED BY THE MILITARY: 29**

* * *

Kincaid slightly leaned over towards Wilkes and whispered out of the corner of his mouth. "Jesus... Ninety? Fuck, I don't even want to think how much higher that could've been had we not been there." Wilkes merely nodded his head and did the same.

"See? I fucking told you this was a trap. Now they're going to try and pin us with some shit and make us out to look bad. Fucking politicians."

"Right? ...Shit, head's up. NATO's here."

Kincaid slightly motioned over towards the back of the room. Sure enough, upon closer inspection both Marines could see two officers. Garbed in their service uniforms they sat there with their arms folded, Kincaid swore he even saw one give a thumbs up with a nod.

Wilkes raised an eyebrow at this response, "So...who they with? You're the military nut, you ever seen those uniforms?"

"Yeah. German and British. No French, though. Not surprised, I'm sure they got their hands full after Paris."

Meanwhile, a portly looking Japanese official began the talks in earnest. "We will now begin the testimonies from the witnesses concerning the refugees. Considering the multitude of languages spoken by witnesses, our senators, and the various delagates from across the world, we will carry out this questions and answers session in English. I would now like to ask those present to please put on your headphones." He paused for a moment as the audience put on their headpieces, while a group of men in a corner prepared themselves to translate. "Senator Kouhara Mizuki, you have the stage for the first round of questions."

Kouhara merely nodded before turning her attention towards Itami, "Thank you, chairman. Lieutenant Itami, I'm going to get straight to the point." She promptly pointed to the billboard with a stern but calm face.

Round one.

"You arrived at Coda with your three trucks and an M1A1 Abrams tank, did you not?"

If Itami was nervous he certainly didn't show it. In fact, the Marines surmised he had everything under control. He merely took a casual posture and nodded. "Yes, each Recon Team was assigned one tank from the platoon. Ours' was assigned Corporal Parker Elton's tank."

Kouhara glanced over at Elton, and beckoned him to come forward. "Corporal Elton, if you could please?"

The young tank commander got up from his seat, receiving a small and unnoticed good luck pat from Aldritch before making his way to the other podium. As he took up his place, the politician addressed him again.

"Corporal Elton, how best would you explain your visit to Coda and subsequent evacuation of the refugees?"

"Ma'am, as tankers, our job is combat support. At the time, command was unsure in regards to the exact situation outside Camp Alnus. That being said, we were attached to Lieutenant Itami's team as a security measure. This is not unlike operations we undertook in Afghanistan, our focus at the time being a threat deterrent. When we arrived at Coda, our mission parameters changed, and we moved on to help the refugees."

"With all that firepower, one would guess you'd be ready to take on anything. Which is what brings me to my next point. Ninety casualties. How was this possible?"

Itami merely straightened his tie as he went to respond. "Prior to the dragon's attack on the convoy, we had full knowledge of its existence, having seen it a day before. In fact, it was thanks to Corporal Parker's tank that we were able to scare it off in the first place. We were prepared for it's return, but before I go any further, let me say this."

There was silence as the audience and Kouhara waited for Itami to continue.

"That dragon was no mere wild animal. There was fair degree of intelligence to its actions, moreso than expected. When it began its attack, it displayed tactics not unlike what you might see a modern attack aircraft pilots use. It came down at us with the sun at its back, and struck with timing in mind. By the time we realized it was even there, it had already done severe damage to the convoy.

"No sooner had it began its attack however, the Marines immediately engaged it, and began to draw its attention off both us and the refugees. Regrettably, however, a great deal of the damage had already been done."

If Kouhara was trying to get dirt on both Itami and Elton, she wasn't having any luck so far and it showed in her mannerisms. She glanced at Elton once more before grabbing her microphone. "Corporal Elton, you and your crew took this beast head on. Explain the battle for us if you could."

Elton nodded, "Yes Ma'am. Upon Corporal Kincaid's acquiring of the target, we immediately began to engage. Our first shot was with a HEAT round; knocked it right out of the sky." He paused for a moment, a slight smirk in his face. "It didn't like that. Once we got its attention, we immediately sent up the recommendation to Recon Team Three for them to focus on getting both themselves and the refugees out."

"So you're saying you willingly put both yourself and your crew in harm's way for the rest of the team?"

"That's correct ma'am, if anyone was going to take this thing down it was going to be us."

Before Kouhara could respond, another Japanese official promptly stood up from his chair glaring at Elton all the while. Kouhara stood there dumbfounded, whoever this official was he obviously had more clout than she did.

"So then what went wrong? According to reports, that dragon is still alive."

The portly Japanese official from before promptly rose up from his chair, "Diet member Eto, please wait your turn."

"Just a moment, chairman. I'll be brief."

Aldritch had leaned over towards Mari in response to all of this, murmuring out of the corner of his mouth. "Who's this guy? He looks shady as hell." He hadn't seen her face twist into a frown, if he had it wouldn't of helped his mood.

"That's Seichi Eto. He's with the Nippon Kaigi."

"Which means?"

"You saw the black trucks outside. He hates you, and everything that America represents."

Aldritch sighed, "Christ, here we go. I was wondering when one of these would pop up."

"There's plenty more where he came from, and plenty of them just so happen to be here. Be careful."

"Noted."

Itami couldn't help but look at Elton out of the corner of his eye, he could feel the anger coming off the Marine.

"What went wrong? Sir we did everything we could to get that dragon off the refugees and focused on us and when we-"

"Then explain why so many had to die, if you were 'Doing everything you could', why wasn't it enough?"

Elton's eye twitched as his grip tightened on the podium. "Sir? I put both myself and my crew in danger to peel that beast off. We charged at it directly, and that's not something you're meant to do with a tank. You use your mobility, weapon systems, and terrain to your advantage in a standard engagement. This wasn't a standard engagement, and we didn't have terrain to utilize. Halfway through the fight we experienced a misfire. My crew went through the proper misfire procedures in a quick and timely fashion, but that wasn't quick enough. That beast was on us faster than we could fix the problem. When it hit us, it knocked my gunner unconscious, and caused us to throw track. The only reason we're still alive is because of that tank's armor and Recon Team Three's quick intervention."

If Elton didn't know any better, the Official had almost...smirked? "A misfire? Corporal Elton, could this misfire have been a direct result from you and your platoon being sent through the gate on training tanks?"

Training tanks. Somehow, this Eto character had gotten his hands on information that some of the tankers had even forgotten about. There was a very big series of differences between training tanks, and the tanks taken on combat deployments, chief among them is the quality of parts. Tanks sent on deployment were constantly maintained prior to being assigned crews. Everything is meticulously inventoried and ran through in depth procedures to ensure they would perform when needed.

Training tanks were meant for just that- Training. They were older, some even refurbished after taking heavy damage in combat operations. They were meant to break, to train the tankers to be proficient in mastering their machines. Here We Go Again had definitely "Seen some shit" alright. Plenty of training operations. If anything, her trials through Ginza and the Special Region were something to be proud of.

But Elton wouldn't get to state this, Itami would. He promptly straightened himself before glaring at Eto.

"Senator Eto, if these tanks are indeed training tanks, then I'm nothing short of impressed. In fact, I can't help but wonder what these Marines would be capable of with 'deployment' tanks. Time and time again I've seen them strive for excellence, be it defending both myself and my team, or throwing themselves right into the thick of a firefight. Having these tanks on our side has been nothing short of comforting, their crews even more so. The fact that training tank took a severe hit from the dragon and continued to engage is impressive in my eyes. In fact had it not been for them, I doubt I'd be here talking right now."

Eto stood there for a few moments before simply nodding and taking his seat, a defeated look on his face. "Kouhara you may continue..."

"Thank you, Corporal Elton you can return to your seat."

As Elton turned to take his seat, he glanced at Itami a small smirk forming on his face for but a moment. Itami did the same, giving him a small thumbs up behind his podium.

* * *

 **OUTSKIRTS OF BURGLEN**

"Boyd, you seeing anything?"

Silence...

"Boyd!"

"Jesus, William calm the fuck down. I ain't seein shit, just a whole lotta smoke coming from a few houses. If someone was there, they're fuckin gone now."

Van Hauser shook his head before grabbing one of the dash mounted handsets, "Bullshit. They're there. They're probably hiding, just get the hell back inside."

Boyd got up from behind the Humvee's turret gunner and jumped down the side, slipping through the open door and promptly shutting it behind him. Meanwhile, Van Hauser keyed out over the net.

"All vics, this is Three. Be advised, we're not seeing anything moving around right now. Recommend we move in with caution. Good chance whoever caused all of this already spotted us."

Things were quiet for a few moments before one of the convoy commanders responded. "Solid, Three. All vics be advised, we're going to encircle the village and slowly move inwards. I want a road guard posted on all roads leading to and from this place. Nobody comes in our out without our say so."

All the vehicles in the convoy rogered up before the commander responded. "Solid copy on all, alright people keep it condition one. Advance."

Slowly but surely, all the vehicles began to make their way off the road, each vehicle began to take its place as a large steel circle began to lock the village down. Textbook "Assault" on a target. With the roads blocked off, and any other avenues of approach under surveillance, anyone trying to get out of dodge would have to get through the Marines and Japanese.

The village in question, Burglen, had been pretty typical as far as what the allies were used to seeing at this point. Densely packed houses sat on either side of a narrow road, small picket fences behind them serving as makeshift backyards for their crops.

This no doubt served as the housing area for the "Commoners", and as such, it had been hit the hardest. Those with more powerful optics could see the extent of the damage done. Corpses littered the grounds and fields, arrows jutting from their backs. Several houses were still on fire, that white material used in their construction fueling the flames like gasoline.

It was an unwarranted attack. Whoever had carried this out wanted nothing more than loot. It was a grim reminder of their new job. The allies still had plenty of work to do before the areas around Alnus could be effectively considered "Safe".

Curiously enough, the other side of the village remained relatively intact, and for good reason. Judging by the big manor house, this area no doubt belonged to the lord and his family, and more than likely housed the most riches.

Many of the Japanese troops stared out their vehicles' windows with grim expressions, gripping their weapons as their eyes darted around looking for the enemy. The lack of value placed on human life in the Special Region was still a relatively new concept to them, and many still hadn't gotten used to the act of killing. They were a self defense force, prior to the gate opening the most "Action" they ever saw was training operations and relief efforts.

For the Marines, this was just another example of just how low man could stoop. Their history was forged in bloody conflicts, and as such, it was that warrior mentality what allowed them to win in the first place. Bellieu Wood, the Pacific, Somalia, Fallujah and Marjah were places were the loss of life had been great and, the cost even greater.

As a result, new generations had began to grow numb at the act of killing, even going so far as to pump themselves up, looking for a fight. They had to. To be a Marine was to expect being thrown at the worst the world had to offer, the first boots on the ground as shock troops.

Sometimes it took "Monsters" to fight monsters. Fine by the Marines though. They knew what kind of men they really were.

"Jesus. Go easy on the gas, stay online with the other vehicles." Van Hauser continued to aim out his vehicle's window, giving his driver a tap on the shoulder as Burglen began to grow closer. Meanwhile, other vehicles began to peel off, taking positions to complete the lockdown.

"Aye sir."

"Damn right. Boyd, you seeing anything?"

The corporal continued to aim through his scope, occasionally adjusting the windage and elevation nobs. "Nope, just a whole lotta dead shit. This place got hit hard." Van Hauser reached around and tapped his turret gunner on the leg, "Johnson? Anything to add?"

Johnson continued to slowly scan left and right, his voice coming through his balaclava muffled. "Nope. Not a god damn thing."

"Keep looking. They're there. I fucking feel it."

Eventually, the steel circle around the village began to slow down. A couple vehicles stopped early to offload troops to search nearby thickets or patches of dense bushes, their shotgunners taking the lead. If the enemy wanted to jump out and say hi, these squads would be ready to return the greeting.

The circle of vehicles sat there for a few moments as one of the convoy commanders came over the net, this time the voice was Japanese, an officer by his tone and better knowledge of English. The plan was simple, a good majority of the vehicles would stay on the outskirts acting as a screening element. Meanwhile, other vehicles would go on clear out the village.

The teams that went in were going to be equally comprised of JSDF soldiers and Marines. This reasoning behind this was simple, the Japanese needed experience in urban operations, and it just so happened that the accompanying Marines were experts in that area. In fact, many operations had been carried out in a similar manner.

Command had placed mutual cooperation high on the list of priorities long before the initial incursion. If the allies were going to make any leeway during this campaign, they'd need to have good rapport down to the unit level. So far things had been going smoothly, but every now and then the occasional fight or disagreement still broke out. Allies or not, both forces were worlds apart, both in ideology and methods of doing business.

There were also the nationalists to consider.

In this situation, Van Hauser and his vehicle were going to be accompanying one of the clearing teams, consisting of a Komatsu and an MRAP. Fine by them, the trip had been boring thus far.

As the three vehicles began to pull up the southern road, Van Hauser raised his skull faced balaclava up, and put on his tactical sunglasses.

"Jesus, why the hell do you wear that motard shit?"

Boyd rolled his eyes as he took his dip out and threw it out his window, promptly flushing his mouth out with his hydration pack's tube. The lieutenant merely rolled his eyes before opening his door. "Because it scares the fuck out of the bad guys. Should've seen their reactions at Italica."

Boyd and the SAW toting Marine got off the humvee, shutting the doors as they stepped up to the front of the vehicle.

"Oh really? Didn't notice, I was too busy trying to avoid getting turned into a pin cushion."

The SAW gunner merely chuckled at this remark. Everyone had had plenty of close calls in that bloodbath. From the moment they disembarked the helicopter, it had been a hectic firefight. Even with their ancient technology, the enemy was tenacious, and the Marines in particular actually admired their persistence.

To a degree, of course.

The Americans stood there for a moment as the eyed the carnage ahead of them. If the scene had looked bad before from a distance, it looked even worse up close. 'Savages' was the better term to describe whoever had came through here. Even the Taliban weren't this chaotic.

Someone would pay for the damage done here. They would make sure of it.

"Ah! Right on schedure! Grorious Nippon troops!"

Boyd chuckled as he saw the Japanese soldiers pile out of their Komatsu. They looked odd toting their cumbersome Type 64's around. Some of them were clearly green, their eyes darting around behind stern expressions as they readied their rifles. It also didn't help that their ages were completely random. Some were clearly young, and a few were definitely way too old to be on the front lines.

Meanwhile, the MRAP's occupants piled out of their own vehicle. Unlike the Japanese, most of them were practically chomping at the bit to get things kicked off, the shotgunners in particular.

It went without saying that anyone issued a shotgun was expected to be right at the front of any engagement the Marines found themselves in. As a result, only the biggest and "meanest" were selected for this role. Expecting someone less than that was asking for a rough time. Surprisingly enough, the Japanese had almost completely forgone the usage of shotguns. They didn't have them in their inventory, their military never bothering to adopt any.

If they wanted in on the "fun", they certainly didn't show it. Only a handful thus far had attempted to requisition a few from the Marines' armories. Those that did, however, quickly became attached to them, even with the unfamiliar and often rough recoil.

As the two groups made their way over, Van Hauser nudged Boyd to stop him from making any more stupid remarks. The last thing they needed was everyone getting pissed off at each other during an urban operation. Once the team was assembled, and quick introductions were carried out, the general plan was touched upon one last time by a First Lieutenant Nielsen.

Once that was done, the team began its movement through the village. The vehicles would slowly push up, with infantry staying close to cover their blind spots. Every so often the group would stop, a few Marines and Japanese troops stacking up on a house before kicking down a rotting wooden door and filing in. Such searches had thus far produced little to no results, just more scenes of violence and unwarranted pillaging.

This went on for a while, everyone fully wired and anticipating the next door to reveal some coven of bandits. or at least some hiding civilians to rescue.

"Fucking christ man. This is what, the third goddamn house and nothing? You really think these guys are still here?"

Boyd stood outside, hoisting his DMR into the air as Van Hauser and the rest of a group came out from yet another destroyed building. The lieutenant lowering his balaclava to get some fresh air.

"They're here, I'm telling you."

Van Hauser looked around and surveyed their surroundings. They had been slowly making their way into the village center, and could now see other teams coming up from their respective routes. At the village center stood a small well, with several corpses littered all around it. The way they had been lined up indicated a series of systematic executions, a change of pace from what the teams had been seeing this far.

"Well if they are, they're obviously being a bunch of fuckin pussies. Everyone wants to be a gangster until its time to d-"

He was promptly interrupted by the lieutenant's hand jamming his mouth. "Shut up! Do you hear that?"

In betwen the noise of the fires, a soft moan could be heard from a house up ahead. Nielsen stepped up and turned to the vehicles, signalling the drivers to cut the engines. After a few hand motions, a Marine fireteam came up behind him, followed by a few Japanese.

After hand signalling Van Hauser's team, both groups filed in towards the noise, shotguns leading once again. Boyd joined in this time, his DMR fixed on the building ahead.

Then, a pink blur burst from a window, and smashed into the mud.

Time stopped with the noise, as the soldiers and marines saw a small baby flung into the ground, it's little body twisting and turning as it rolled on the dirt.

Nobody could say anything, until one of the JSDF dropped his gun and rushed forward, his lieutenant yelling at him to come back. He dropped on the floor next to the baby, then turned around and waved, shouting all the time.

"KARE WA IKITE IRU! EISEI! EIS- AAH!"

Another blur came from the house, and the soldier dropped to the ground, an arrow embedded in his flak vest. It only took him a split second to react though, quickly getting up and snatching the baby in both arms. Without even bothering to check the arrow, the man dashed back to his squad as all hell broke lose.

Without thinking twice, the entire group opened up on the house as the sounds of scattered firefights began to break out through the village.

"CONTACT!"

* * *

 **JAPANESE DIET**

Kincaid watched as a pair of new individuals made their way to the opposite podium, paperwork in hand. He couldn't quite figure out who they were, but one thing was for sure, they weren't Japanese.

On the right side of the podium stood a bald European looking man, dressed in a typical grey suit and a light blue tie, he looked all business. On his left stood another similarly dressed, Indian looking man. Unlike the European, he had hair and glasses on, and looked a little more relaxed. Things were quiet for a few moments as the pair shuffled their paper work, the European clearing his throat before speaking into the microphone with a thick French accent.

"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, esteemed guests and memebers of the Diet. My name is Charles Lagarde." He motioned towards his companion, the Indian merely bowing his head slightly "And this is my colleague Mr. Dilawar we are representatives of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and Human Rights Council. On behalf of the nations of the world, we welcome the guests from the Special Region, and hope they enjoy their stay here in our world. We would also like to take a moment to ask a few questions."

Lagarde glanced at his papers for a moment, "Starting with... Miss Lelei La Lalena?"

Everyone in the audience, including the troops, looked at a now confused Lelei as she rose up from her seat. She had understood his words, but the accent was strange and foreign to what she was used to. The young mage made her way to the stage's podium, eyeing the microphone curiously before giving Lagarde her usual thousand yard stare.

Kincaid couldn't be sure, but he swore he had noticed Lagarde and Dilawar shuffle uncomfortably at her gaze. The Frenchman cleared his throat again, before speaking into his microphone with a raised eyebrow, "Do.. you understand English?"

Lelei merely nodded before speaking into her microphone, a few Japanese officials fussing with their ear pieces for a moment. They hadn't expected someone from a different world to be able to speak another language, let alone English. "Yes, but your manner of speaking is new to me. I apologize if I struggle to understand you."

Both of the UN officials stood there dumbfounded. Like the rest of the guests, they too hadn't expected this. Lagarde smiled for a moment, "Ah I do apologize, I will do my best to make things as smooth as possible." He paused for a moment as he tried to talk in such a way she would understand.

"So Miss Lalena, before we go any further. Do tell us all a bit about yourself, a great many people here today are nothing but curious about both you and your world."

Lelei paused for a moment as she looked around at the audience, collecting her thoughts for a moment before speaking.

"I am a nomad of the Rurudo tribe, and mage-disciple of Sage Cato."

Both officials couldn't help but cock their heads in curiosity, Largarde in particular speaking on their behalf. He knew what the word mage meant, hell everyone watching did.

But it couldn't be true...could it?

"Mage-disciple?.."

"Yes, a practitioner of magic."

"Magic?..."

Itami and the others had hoped it wouldn't come to this, hoped those words weren't uttered during the course of the Diet summons. They knew what Lelei would do, and she did just that.

No sooner had Lagarde asked, Lelei merely closed her eyes and uttered a few words. In moments, a small spark of flame emerged atop her staff, causing a great many of the Japanese officials to almost rocket back from their seats. Others weren't so intimidated, the NATO representatives and DS agents in particular. The former's eyes going wide as they began to talk in hushed whispers, the latter instinctively hovering their hands over their concealed sidearms and murmuring into their comms.

Meanwhile, the sounds of cameras snapping pictures continued to echo with the occasional flash, this was a once in a lifetime event.

Lagarde cleared his throat and stammered as he tried to compose his thoughts. Meanwhile, noticing everyone's reactions to her magic display, Lelei merely closed her eyes for a moment as the flame dispelled. Both Lelei and Lagarde stared at each other with similar wide eyed expressions before the Frenchman composed himself.

"Miss Lalena... that was... impressive. You'll have to excuse our shock for a moment. You see... magic is a thing of fantasy here in our world, the stuff of children's stories and works of fiction. To see this now is quite." He paused for a moment as he tried to find his words, fixing his glasses with one hand. "...Something to say the least, but tell me are there others like you? Is magic a prevalent thing in your world?"

Lelei could tell that her last spectacle had ushered quite the reaction. Whether it was good or bad was a mystery to her, but one thing was certain. Despite how often she liked to be blunt with her words, perhaps this was a time for discretion. So she chose her next words with considerable care.

"No. I am one of a select few who can use it. Magic is a sacred practice in our world, something never to be misused. It takes years to even grasp the fundamentals of it and I am still very early in my training."

If the room's aura had been tense and constrictive before, that feeling had certainly dissipated as Lelei finished her statement. Truth be told, a great many commanders had actually wondered whether or not magic was going to be a factor in the coming campaign. Preliminary classified reports back to Earth had revealed that the Special Region was home to a wide variety of stereotypical anthropomorphic species, as well as new species of flora and fauna. So naturally, magic was deemed next on the list of things to be encountered.

And now, something to make a contingency for.

Meanwhile, Lagarde sighed as he shuffled his paperwork. "I see. Well, now that that's out of the way, we understand that you and the others present are survivors of the dragon attack. Could you tell us your account of the event, how have the JSDF and Marines been conducting themselves?"

This was it, the moment everyone had been waiting for. To those looking to incriminate the troops, this was the proof they would need to get them pulled out, or at least the Marines. To those looking to keep the troops in, this was the evidence they would need to keep the status quo.

Everyone else just wanted to know what was going on.

Meanwhile, both the JSDF and Marine guests listened intently. They knew they had done no wrong, but it was always good to get a second hand opinion. Lelei looked around at the audience with her usual thousand-yard stare as she started to talk, her monotone voice causing some to shift as they tried to get a better listen.

"There's a great deal I could say about both Itami's warriors and the Marines. The only reason I am able to stand before all of you today, is because of them."

She outstretched an arm in their direction as she continued, "Though their methods of fighting and customs are foreign to me, it has been nothing short of..." Lelei paused for a moment as she reflected on the events that had led up to now. She thought about when she had first met the Marines and Japanese, how they had beaten back the dragon and saved both herself and many others.

She then thought of all the strange dances and jokes the Marines would tell, of every time she had wandered into the tank area, only to startle them once they noticed she had been watching in silence. How they would sometimes let her stick around and tell her wild stories about all their accomplishments, treating her almost like a little sister as they let her sit atop their tanks.

Older brothers she never had.

Prior to their arrival, her life had been spent with her face buried in books, or constantly on the move. It was enlightening, sure, but hardly what one could consider a joy. Everything up till now had been nothing short of an adventure.

And she had enjoyed every minute of it. If Itami and the others had seen, they would've noticed that a small smile was beginning to form on her face. The closest thing to a first smile they would have ever seen.

"...an enlightening experience. One that I would not trade for anything."

Lagarde and Dilawar exchanged glances, the Indian merely nodding before Lagarde took the lead again. "Well, I am very glad that the coalition forces have been treating you well. Now, I understand that you, and several other refugees from Coda village have been taken into Camp Alnus, and are currently housed there, correct?." Lelei merely nodded. "Tell me are all your needs being met? Is there anything else you need?"

Lelei went silent for a few moments. This wasn't a trick question. Did the people here not have faith in their troops?

"All of our food, clothing, hygenic, and spiritual needs are being met. To a higher standard than what we're used to. If I were to ask more, there would be no end to it."

"Very well, and do you have the means to live normal lives? Are you able to provide for yourselves if you need to?"

"Yes. We all have a source of income, and are working together towards a better future. The Coalition has been very helpful in making sure we do so."

"Very well, do you have any complaints or suggestions?"

"No."

Lagarde and Dilawar exchanged smiles before Lagarde returned his attention to Lelei. "Well, we are very glad to hear this. Thank you very much Miss Lalena, I would now like to call up Miss.."

He squinted at the page for a moment. "Tuka Luna Marceau?"

By now, Kincaid had been spacing out, staring off into the distance. Diet summons or not, he was still a troop. Long hours of sitting around and listening to people talk wasn't his fortee.

He could have sworn he saw a baguette coming out of the Frenchman's mouth, then slowly sank back inside. It wasn't until Wilkes had murmured a familiar jingle that he had snapped out of it.

"We are Farmers, bum badum bum bum bum bum."

Kincaid had to muster all his bearing as he watched a shy looking Tuka walk up to Lelei in the podium. Between her suit, and the jingle he had gotten the reference. He nudged Wilkes as he took a deep breath through his nostrils, trying his best to calm himself down.

"Bro, chill. Please, not here..."

"Ah, shamefur dispray..."

"Dude chill."

Kincaid rolled his eyes slightly. "So uh...what's been going on?"

"Uh..."

"You're kidding me right?"

"We're gucci bro, relax."

Kincaid sighed. He could only remember bits and pieces of the talks. So far nobody had been throwing paperwork around, or yelling, so things had to be going good.

But for how long?

His eyes wandered around for a few moments as he looked at the rest of the guys. The Marines were all in their own worlds right now, no doubt reflecting on the talks thus far, and the visit to Japan still ahead. Itami and Kurokawa were also in similar states, the only difference being Kurokawa's eyes wandering right back at him.

With a small smile and a wink.

Kincaid merely returned the smile, a wink would just dig his hole deeper.

 _Goddamnit._

He sighed as he returned his attention back to the talks. Lelei was going to translate on Tuka's behalf. Clever girl, no doubt she had definitely made waves with everyone watching. Thankfully, like all the other troops, he could understand Tuka fairly well, so the translation zigzag wasn't going to be a headache. This time he was going to pay attention, this would no doubt be the most talking the elf had done so far.

"My name is Tuka Luna Marceau. I am an Elf, hailing from the Marceau clan of the Rodo Forest and daughter of Hodor Rei."

The audience sat there confused for a few moments as Lelei finished translating, Lagarde in particular staring at Tuka's now very visible pointed ears. His head tilted for a few moments. He heard rumours of other species, but he never thought a non-human would come through the Gate.

"Thank you, Miss Marceau. From what I understand. You are not human or descended from humans. Is that correct?"

"Yes. We elves have existed for thousands of years. Only recently have we encountered humans."

"Only recently?"

"Yes, about two thousand years ago, according to legend."

This statement had mixed responses. Some sat there shocked, unable to comprehend what they had just heard. Others, not so much, especially not Reeves. Everything he had just heard only confirmed the theory he had been developing for while. The stocky Texan fixed his glasses before chuckling.

"Hah, just as I thought."

The other tankers looked at him, a few raising their eyebrows.

"The hell you talking about?"

Reeves looked around at the platoon before folding his arms. "The guys we've been fighting up till now looked like Romans, yeah? Almost same equipment and such?"

Parker had been sitting next to him, spitting his dip into a bottle before raising an eyebrow. "Yeah..? What of it?"

"What of it? The Romans were in their prime two thousand years ago, man. Bit of a coincidence, don't you think?"

Reeves was a history buff, especially in matters regarding ancient Rome. Normally the platoon always gave him a rough time for information they thought was otherwise useless, but in this situation they couldn't help but wonder.

If it looked like a duck and quacked like a duck, then it had to be a duck. These Imperial troops were doing just that, and if Reeves had an inkling of something being Roman...

He wasn't wrong.

Back at the Diet, Lagarde merely stared as he let Tuka's words sink in. He didn't seem too perplexed, at this point anything was possible. This time, Dilawar whispered something into Lagarde's ear, the Frenchmen merely nodding before the Indian spoke into his microphone.

"Miss Marceau, I would just like to ask you something. Is you being non human causing you any problems in the refugee camp, with fellow refugees, or Coalition soldiers?"

Tuka thought on this for a few moments as Lelei translated, the Elf looking down for a moment as she responded.

"Well, generally, non humans keep to themselves in the camp. Most of the human refugees generally avoid us, sometimes giving us strange looks." She paused for a second. "This is to be expected though, we tend to be looked down upon by the human population.

"But... the Coalition troops... they surprised me. They look so different from one another and yet treat each other as equals."

She looked up at Deliwar and Lagarde, "Look at you Mister Dilawar. In my world the color of your skin would prevent you two from being friends."

Dilawar was just getting ready to say something before Tuka cut him off, her eyes almost taking on a glint of hope. "Which is why the way the Coalition soldiers treats us is so shocking. They welcome us with open arms, and always seem eager to learn more about us. Some of them have been very friendly to me." She stopped again, giving a slight chuckle before continuing. "They even gave me a nickname."

"...A nickname?"

Tuka smiled as she did the Vulcan Salute, "Yes they wave at me like this, and call me Spock."

A series of hushed laughs ushered out of the audience. Someone had clearly pulled the wool over this Elf's eyes.

Someone like Wilkes, more than likely. Aldritch and the others glared at him, and a look of confusion registered on his face. "What?...Yo, why ya'll lookin at me like that?"

Tuka wasn't aware that the audience had been more or less laughing at her. If anything, she thought they were laughing with her. So when she innocently did the salute and smiled again, this only caused the audience to laugh even more.

Needless to say, the internet exploded, and she had became a meme that day.

Eventually, order was brought to the summons by a Japanese official, and things began to proceed normally once more. Dilawar leaned forward again as he spoke into his microphone.

"Well, back onto the topic at hand. You mentioned humans looking down upon other races, is this a common thing?"

"Yes. In our world the human Empire has established a great civilization. This has led to arrogance and hostility towards other races. There were times in which great purges were carried out, be it by humans or other tribes." She paused again, clearly affected by the whole ordeal. "It is sad, really. Most of these peoples usually end up living their final days in slavery, before slowly fading away."

A series of hushed murmurs ushered out of the audience, stern looks being exchanged between various officials. The NATO representatives merely glared from their seats. Everything they had just heard went against everything the free world stood for, what they stood for.

Someone was going to pay. They would fix this.

Kincaid just sat there as he heard all this, his fists slowly clenching. If there ever was a time for purpose behind his enlistment, this was it, and many of his fellow Marines sitting there felt the same way. He was glad Italica and Aurea would be under their protection.

Even Itami and and Kurokawa seemed visibly shaken, the Lieutenant in particular had taken on a serious expression, uncharacteristic of him.

Meanwhile, Elton leaned in towards Aldritch his voice was calm, but his words were anything but. "I don't mean to be nosy, sir, but if you and that Princess are friends, I'd strongly recommend you uh, you know... persuade her to see our side of things. Otherwise, well... Let's just say," he cracked his knuckles, "I'd hate to have my name anywhere near the word 'Imperial' after this."

Aldritch merely nodded, his arms folded all the while. "Duly noted Corporal...duly noted."

It was worth noting that, throughout all of this, Rory had been eerily silent and unmoving, her face hidden behind the black veil.

Dilawar's and Lagarde's eyes widened as they whispered to each other. The Indian slowly looked up, his expression changing to one of extreme seriousness.

"Miss Marceau? Is slavery a common thing in your world?"

Tuka whispered something in Lelei's ear. Clearly, she didn't want to answer that. Instead, she let Lelei do it in her stead.

"Yes, it is very common. It is the basis of the imperial economy. Slaves work in mines and plantations, providing the Empire with it's currency and richest commodities, among other things."

The UN representatives raised an eyebrow. "Other things?"

Lelei nodded. "While several take roles of household servants, some beastmen are drafted into the military, and used as disposable shock troops. Women are usually sent to plantations, but a few are taken as concubines for important family leaders."

By now, both Dilawar and Lagarde had been trying their best to keep their composure. The indian man in particular seemed to be locked in an expression of suppressed rage. "That will be all, thank you Miss Lalena, Miss Marceau."

With that, both pairs returned to their places. Meanwhile, Kincaid leaned in towards Wilkes, "Well that's that. Shit's about to escalate bro. Human rights violations? Oh yeah, the U.N. is gonna be pissed, if they aren't already."

Wilkes merely sighed, "Yeah, no shit, right?"

"We're gonna do good things over there."

"You think so?"

"I know so, I can feel it man. This is it, this our time, the defining moment of our generation. Think about it dude. We'll be the Gate Generation..."

"Gate Generation? You just fuckin think of that? Sounds like a book title."

Kincaid paused for a moment as he looked out over the audience, at his dad at the far opposite side of the room. Their eyes met for but a moment, a simple nod exchanged between a Marine father and son.

Almost like he agreed.

"Yeah...it does doesn't it?"

Suddenly, the portly chairman's voice cut off his train of thought. "I'd like to invite Senator Koike up to the stage for the next series of questions."

The guests and audience watched as Koike made his way to the podium, nodding at the chairman. He was typical as far as elderly Japanese officials went, wearing a double breasted coat with a red tie, and thick glasses on his face.

Wilkes couldn't help but sigh as he muttered, "This guy reeks of cock sucker." Kincaid nodded in agreement, he could feel the bad vibes too.

Koike took up his position behind his podium, glaring at senators Kouhara and Eto for a moment before grasping both sides as he spoke into the microphone."Good afternoon members of the Diet, guests from the Special Region and countries of our world. As opposed to my colleagues, I would like to start off by welcoming you all to our glorious country of Japan. We are honored to have you here."

He paused for a moment before looking directly at the refugees. "I am concerned about the events that transpired at the city of Italica and would like to ask a couple questions regarding that."

Being the ranking officers at the battle, both Itami and Aldritch were about to stand before Koike promptly dissuaded them of that notion. His voice cut through the air like a dagger. "Excuse me officers, but I think the people of Japan would like to hear this from the perspective of the common soldier."

He looked at his papers for a moment, "I would like to call upon Corporal Jasper Kincaid and Kurokawa-Nis?."

Kincaid felt his heart skip a beat, something no doubt both Aldritch and Itami's had just done. They figured out what Koike's game was.

 _Clever bastard._

Kincaid slowly rose up from his seat, his knees cracking as he straightened his blouse before making his way to the podium. Time seemed to slow down for him as he made his way over, his eyes slowly scanning across the audience before resting on his father. The expressions they exchanged said more than words could.

 _Dad..._

 _Don't worry son, you got this. Be brave, and show this asshole what we're made of._

Across the United States Armed Forces and veteran communities, cheers and gutteral war cries came forth in front of televisions. This was an enlisted man, the voice of the troops was about to be heard. They were backing him up every step of the way.

Mari's eyes laid on his as they met at the podium, before standing shoulder to shoulder. To her, this was more than just them just answering questions together.

This was them fighting together once again.

Koike eyed them both for a moment before leaning forward. "I understand that you two were part of one of the first teams that went into Italica. Could you please explain your roles?"

Mari merely nodded at Kincaid letting him take the lead as he spoke into his microphone, "My name is Corporal Jasper Kincaid. I'm an 1812 M1A1 tank crewman with Second Tank Battalion, Charlie Company, Headquarters platoon. I'm currently the gunner aboard Corporal Elton's tank."

Koike merely nodded before Mari spoke into her microphone, "My name is Kurokawa Mari, I'm a combat medic currently serving in First Combat Brigade, Reconnaissance Company, Third Section."

"Thank you. Let's begin. According to reports brought to us regarding the Italica incident, your team arrived there with no less than..." He stopped as he looked down at his papers. "Three armored trucks, and a platoon of four M1A1 tanks. I'd like to start by asking, why?"

Mari paused to think for a moment, then answered what she could remember. "Our original objective was transporting valuable materials to Italica. These were dragon scales, taken by the Alnus refugees to sell in the markets. For what we understand, they are a fairly valuable product, and our high command thought it'd be a great source of income for the refugees."

"So why couldn't the refugees go on their own? I don't see the point of taking such fire power with them."

"Dragon scales are worth thousands for these people. I am not sure how much that would be in our currency, but our platoon lieutenant estimated it was worth more than ten million yen."

Koike narrowed his eyes, clearly not satisfied by the answer. "But that was not the only reason, was it?" He raised his voice a bit louder. "If that was the case, then a simple armored truck would have sufficed."

Mari glanced at Kincaid, if there was anyone who could shoot this statement down it was him.

"Sir, as tankers, we bring a very valuable and flexible asset to the table. Our tanks have powerful, long range optics, and are capable of providing accurate ground level direct fire suppor-"

Koike promptly interrupted, "All well and fine, Corporal, but you're not answering the question."

Kincaid felt one his fists begin to clench at just how incompetent this man really was. A tank wasn't a blunt object to just throw around, it was thinking like that that separated good tankers from bad ones. he and his fellow tankers had often joked that they could easily run bloody circles around the JSDF's crews.

Deep down, they knew this was the truth. Technology or not, it all came down to crew, training and experience, and whether Koike wanted to admit it or not, his military had neither of that. That's why the Four Horsemen were there in the first place.

Why the United States were there.

"Sir, the entire surrounding area around Alnus is a lawless and unstable one. After Ginza, and our initial incursion through the gate, there's been a large power vacuum affecting many of the towns and villages, including Italica. That city had been under siege for days, and had just barely been holding out with a less than under strengthed garrison."

His eyes focused on the senator's. This man wasn't going to throw him off. "Had we not been there, Italica would have fallen."

"And just who where these people? According to reports, the enemy that had attacked Italica was comprised of rogue members of a defeated army, that means you failed to do your job."

This man wasn't going to let up, and as much as Kincaid wanted to be blunt right back, that's exactly what this man wanted. Meanwhile, Mari had been glancing at him throughout all of this. She felt terrible. Here, Kincaid and the others were guests, and all the officials seem to want to do was incriminate them. If Japan and America were allies, why were the talks even proceeding like this in the first place?

She couldn't help but wonder how something like this would proceed in America.

"Our initial objective was to secure Alnus hill. Once we beat the enemy forces back, we consolidated and began to dig in, in order for combat engineers to begin FOB setup. Expansion has never once been the mission, and it wasn't until now that we realized the severity of the situation outside our perimeters. Not once did we ever expect the enemy forces to go rogue, let alone terrorize the local populace on a scale such as this."

"So the reason for bringing in tanks was for protection against these rogue soldiers?"

"Yes."

"In that case, for future reference, please answer the question without giving redundant statements."

Kincaid merely kept a calm expression, "My apologies Senator."

Koike shuffled his paperwork before leaning in towards his microphone, "Let's continue, shall we? According to JSDF reports, this rouge army stormed Italica while your unit was present. Is that correct?"

"Yes, we offered our assistance to the local garrison in order to better defend the area. At around 0200 hours, we received a static distress call from a special operations team in the nearby area. They had intercepted and engaged an element of this rogue military, and were in need of immediate support. Shortly after that, our communications were jammed by the enemy, and all contact between us, the special operatives, and Camp Alnus was cut off."

For the first time, the senator actually seemed surprised. His glasses lowered slightly as he raised an eyebrow, "Come again? You said they were being jammed?" Kincaid knew damn well what had caused the comm problems, a siren.

Loose lips sink ships however, and he wasn't telling this man anything.

 _Got you, you pompous fuck._

"Sir, at this time the details regarding that are classified. All I know is that once we secured that team's retrograde back to Italica, our comms were completely shut down as well." He glared at Koike as he continued, ramming the message home with his next statement. "Sir, the enemy force outnumbered us in the thousands, and even with the tanks we still required additional support. The men attacking us were on a level of fanaticism that would put Al-Qaeda to shame."

He paused for a moment. Koike had been standing there almost slackjawed at everything he had been hearing up till now. So Kincaid decided to continue on the offensive.

"Senator, these men threw themselves at us with little to no concern for their own lives. In all my years, I don't think I've ever had to expend that much ammunition on an enemy before. All they wanted was Italica, and, sir, let me be clear when I say this. We were not going to let them have it. If the special operations team hadn't engaged whatever it was that had been jamming our comms, the civilian casualty rate at Italica would've been doubled."

Throughout all of this, Mari had been trying her best to suppress a smile. She knew Kincaid could handle this.

Koike took a moment to compose himself as he adjusted his glasses and shuffled his paperwork. "Well, I'm glad that the worst case scenario was averted, and that a great deal of civilian lives were spared. Now, previously, Miss Lalena spoke of slavery and the blatant violations of the most basic of human rights. What was the fate of the surviving marauders, those taken as prisoners of war? I hope the Coalition is treating them humanely, under the regulations of the Geneva Convention."

Kincaid glanced at Mari and muttered with a smile. "All you, Mom."

Mari glared at him for a split second, then turned back to the microphone. "I was not present during the negotiations, but I do know most prisoners were taken by the government of Italica. Only a handful came back with us to Camp Alnus." She paused for a moment, trying to recall previous conversations she had with her fellow squad mates. "Those that remained were put under supervision of the American forces, who now occupy the city and the surrounding areas."

"Occupy?" There was a slight smirk in Koike's face, him seeing the perfect opportunity to strike back. "I was under the impression this was not an offensive operation."

"It was necessary. Italica's ruler is but a ten year old child, senator. Without proper administration, that city could easily fall into anarchy, and the safety of the prisoners of war would not be guaranteed."

"But do you really believe a full scale military occupation is warranted? What gives you the right to take this land?"

"Uh... perhaps I worded myself wrongly." She slightly shrank down into her dress clothes, a bit embarrassed. "The battle exhausted all of Italica's resources, including their capability to defend themselves. The Marines have only stationed troops as peacekeepers, overseeing law enforcement and acting as force deterrent. The local government was left intact, with only Major Joyce acting as advisor for the young countess."

"But doesn't that put the Americans practically in control, then?" he raised his voice again, this time more aggressively. "A child doesn't know any better, and would listen to anyone who sounds convincing. For all I and the Japanese people know, the Marines and Self Defense Force are turning this city into their puppet state!"

Before the medic could reply, Kincaid stepped forward and towards the microphone. "And what would we do with it? Italica may be an important trading hub, and a key strategical position, but we have no need or interest in controlling the population and resources. As much as I hate to say it, this is a more 'conventional' war than that in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are not fighting terrorists, but an organized government. If anything, based on what my father told me, this resembles the Gulf War more than any other engagement I can think of."

"Your point, Corporal?"

"There is no point in taking control of vast territories, or keeping tabs on the population. We have no intention of taking resources for ourselves, either. All we want is to sever Imperial control over this area, and hopefully deter any future incursions by enemy forces."

"Then, tell me, what exactly is your military doing there?"

"We will do what we know best. Establish a protective military presence in the area, with an independent forward operating base, keep the people safe and secure, and ensure the enemy has no chance to reinstate their influence over the city and its ruler."

 _Bounce back from that, asshole._

Koike stood there for a few moments. Once again he found himself on the losing end of this discussion. It wasn't supposed to go like this, he had figured the troops to be out of the loop, misinformed about their campaign. Instead, they were probably just as knowledgeable if not slightly more so than their leaders. He fixed his glasses and shuffled his paperwork once more, he wasn't giving up on this, not that easily.

He still had one card left up his sleeve.

His voice was just as hostile as before, but it lacked the edge it had when he first began talking. "Very well, thank you for your time. I would now like to call Miss Rory Mercury to the stage."

Kincaid and Mari merely nodded, their eyes exchanging a congratulatory expression before making their way back to their seats. As Kincaid sat down, Wilkes muttered.

"Dog, your pops was smiling the entire time."

"He was?"

"Yeah bro, you done good by him."

Kincaid looked over at Jackson, his father merely nodding with a smile.

"Yeah...I did."

Meanwhile, Rory made her way to the podium, Lelei following close behind. The other guests, including Itami, couldn't help but almost sit on the edge of their seats in anticipation. Who knew how things would proceed from here?

The rest of the audience couldn't help but mutter amongst themselves as they stared at the girl's strange attire. Was she in mourning? What's with the goth dress? Who was this child, and why was she carrying around a giant...staff?

Koike raised an eyebrow as he eyed the strange girl for a moment. Child or not, there was something definitely off about her. "Good afternoon Miss Mercury, again I would like to welcome you to our gl-"

Suddenly Lelei raised her hand, "Rory says you should get to the point."

Koike, and everyone else attending the Diet, suddenly went wide eyed at this statement. For the first time, the senator was put on the defense, and by a child of all people. The Marines couldn't help but cover their mouths and chuckle, Wilkes in particular muttering again.

"Bruh, I think you left your balls on the ground."

The senator cleared his throat and straightened himself. He would let this slide... For now.

"Very well, I understand that you have been around the coalition forces for quite some time now. Do you think their actions up till now have been justified?"

Lelei looked at Rory and muttered for a few moments before looking back at the senator. "Tell me, what is your game?"

"...Game?"

"Yes game, ever since you and any other Japanese politician have been talking, your only goal seems to be painting the soldiers as wrong in their actions."

"My colleagues and I want the truth. The Japanese taxpayers want to know where there money is going, what our military is doing."

"You have nothing to worry about, then. Your money is well spent, and everything is fine."

Koike's face began to take on a reddish hue. He was losing his patience. Rapidly. "How can everything be fine if you have all these problems? A dragon killing refugees? An important trading hub under siege, and now having troops stationed there? None of this remotely fine, Miss Mercury. Something is going on, and we want to know what it is."

"If you want to see for yourself why don't you go? Or are you too comfortable in your little power chair to go look?"

Koike's eye twitched. He slammed his hands on his podium, leaning in closer to the microphone and nearly shouted. "I shouldn't need to go! And the people of Japan shouldn't need to go, either! The government sent the military there without supervision, and we know they're up to something!"

Lelei was just about to translate again before Rory shook her head, taking her veil off and revealing her face to the watching world for the first time. She rested her staff against the podium as she grasped both sides, bringing her face close to the microphone.

And speaking in perfect English.

"ARE YOU FUCKING SHITTING ME?!"

Then everything began to fall apart. The microphone screeched in a deafening tone, causing Koike and the audience to grasp their ears in pain. Seeing the chaos that was starting to unfold, Wilkes figured now was a good a time as ever to let loose. He laughed over the sounds of chaos and pointed at Koike, and thankfully nobody could hear what he said next.

"HA! FUCKING BITCH!"

Elton did his best to keep his bearing, smacking Wilkes on the back on the back of the head. Meanwhile, Aldritch leaned over towards Wilkes, his glare piercing his very soul.

"You'd better fucking hope nobody heard that."

"Aye sir."

Slowly but surely, order was restored, a now visibly shaken Koike regaining control of his podium. "What did you say?"

Rory leaned forward, her voice softer than before. "You heard me...boy."

Kincaid and the others hadn't noticed it at first, the strange turn of events had mind boggled them. What the hell was going on?

Meanwhile, Koike tried his best to stand his ground, his glasses almost beginning to fall off as Rory continued to talk.

"I don't understand you people. You have the militaries of two countries fighting to keep you safe, and yet you shit on them, even your allies, like they're the scum of the earth. You only think of your own personal advancement, not giving a damn about the men and women risking their lives so you can sit comfortably and squabble in your chairs. You're acting like children, it disgusts me. How can you expect your soldiers to be loyal to you, when all you do in return is insult their intelligence? I am surprised you even have a military in the first place."

Silence.

"Did you hear me this time, little boy?"

This was the final nail in the coffin, the senator fuming at this point. "Excuse me? Do you know who you're talking to?"

"I know perfectly well who I'm talking to, you're all immature children."

"Children? That's funny coming from a spoiled little brat like you. I'm not sure how you do things in your world, but here in Japan we respect one another, especially our elders."

Wilkes in particular had winced at that remark, he still had nightmares of when Rory had tossed him off the tank. What would she do here?

Rory merely giggled in her usual creepy fashion, her red eyes seemed to pierce right through the senator. A dark, almost ominous aura began to fill the room, the DS agents once again having their hands hovering over their sidearms. This time, they began to make their way closer towards the NATO representatives, whispering into their comms once again.

"You are but a newborn child to me and I have been around for a very, very long time."

"Oh really? Then do enlighten us, how old are you?"

"It is rude to ask a woman her age, you know? I am nine hundred and sixty one years old."

The entire audience gasped, Itami lapsing into a coughing fit. Meanwhile, Koike looked at the Marines, at Kincaid in particular. The young tanker merely nodded with a look that said, "She's no child, believe me."

The senator cleared his throat, his voice almost stammering. "And what of Miss Marceau? Miss Lalena?"

Tuka walked forward, Lelei speaking into the microphone. "One hundred and sixty-five years old."

Once again the audience gasped, slowly looking at Lelei this time as she spoke into the microphone again. "I am fifteen."

Talk about a roller coaster of emotions.

By now Koike was simply at a loss for words, his plans had been foiled not only by the Marines and JSDF, but a girl that looked like a child and had the mouth of a very, very old woman.

Once again, the portly Japanese official from before rose from his seat. "Senator Koike? Will that be all? Do you have anything more to add?"

The senator merely fixed his glasses and collected his paperwork, "No...that will be be all."

"Well then, this concludes today's session. We thank all for your time and hope you enjoy your stay in Japan."

Slowly, all of the Marines and other guests got up with a few sighs of relief and made their way off the stage. Meanwhile, the DS agents escorted Elton's wife and child before blending into the crowd with them.

And promptly disappearing altogether.

* * *

 **NATIONAL DIET MEETING ROOM**

"Jesus Christ. Never again. Never fucking again."

Kincaid mumbled as he leaned against his chair and tared at the ceiling. All he wanted to do was change out of his uniform, get into something comfortable and eat something American. Like before, all of the guests were off in the different areas, but this time, absolutely exhausted.

Elton sat off in one of the opposite corners of the room, his daughter sitting on his lap and wife leaning against his shoulder. Benitez snored happily as slouched in his chair, occasionally scratching an itch that popped out of nowhere. Wilkes had somehow found a tray of god knew what, stuffing his face with vigor as Rory tried to pester him for some. Tuka and Lelei were once again staring out a window as usual and Aldritch was now engrossed in talking to someone over the phone.

Naturally, of course, that meant Mari was sitting right beside him, doing everything in her power to keep him from sleeping, and praising both him and everyone else for a job well done.

Amidst all of this, Itami merely smiled as he stood off to the side, his arms folded all the while.

"You really showed those communists, huh?"

Itami felt a hand pat his shoulder as a familiar voice reached his ears. As he turned around, his eyes went wide as he saw a familiar face.

His old friend, the Minister of Defense, Taro Kanou.

Itami merely smiled as he shook Taro's hand. "I figured you'd be here. Good to see you again, old man."

"Ha! Likewise old friend. How's things on the front lines?"

"Can't complain, things are going quite smooth so far." He looked out at the rest of the group, the Marines in particular. "With some help of course."

Taro chuckled, "I noticed. You know, I wanted to ask you about that. I didn't think you'd be taking their side. What's with the change of heart?"

Itami paused for a moment, glancing back at a now sleeping Kincaid being nudged by an annoyed Mari. "These guys... They are different from the others."

"Oh?"

Itami placed a hand on Tarou's shoulder. "Yeah they're good men, each and every one of them."

 _And they're my friends._

* * *

 **OVAL OFFICE, WASHINGTON D.C.**

"I apologize for that display, I did not think that members of the Nippon Kaigi would be making an appearance at the diet."

Obama sat upright in his chair as he went to reassure the Japanese Prime Minister, rubbing his exhausted eyes for a few moments.

 _Well you did and we both know you're a member of that group. Let's just keep things civil._

"No that's quite alright. Everyone has their bad eggs, I don't let that sort of thing get to me and neither should you. That's hardly a bump in the road Mister Abe I assure you. We have our fair share of radical thinkers here too."

Obama could hear the Prime Ministers sigh of relief even through the phone. "I appreciate your understanding and let me answer on behalf of my people when I say that we appreciate your continued support beyond the gate as well as helping repair the damages after that terrible attack. Nothing will bring back those we lost, but perhaps now we can finally move forward and look towards a brighter future with a wealth of new opportunities."

"Absolutely, that's what allies are for. The American people have felt your loss and take pride knowing our brave men and women are over there once again committing to an old friend."

"We are thankful to have such an alliance."

The president ran a hand across his graying hair before stifling a yawn. "Was that all Mister Abe?"

"Yes, thank you for your time."

Obama hung up before leaning back in his chair and sighing. He then looked back at the few members of his cabinet that had shown up with a tired smile.

"That's gonna make some people angry. How much you want to bet Trump's gonna use that as ammunition?"

Some nods of agreement.

* * *

 **Just a head's up, that baby scene wasn't an original idea. That's a real story Kochi told me of an event that took place during the "Argentine Dirty War".**

 **Originally we were going to leave it as a sort of cliffhanger, but god damn I couldn't sleep with that in my mind. I simply couldn't lead you guys on into thinking A) The infant was hurt..or worse and B) That an arrow had actually done anything to modern SAPI plates.**


	20. Liberty Call

**Ah, so here we are together again. It's been a while hasn't it? Yeah that's my fault 100%.**

 **Would you believe I had, what, two weeks(possibly more) and some change to get this done before summer classes started? And I'm just now publishing this?**

 **Here's my thing though, I wasn't _feeling_ it you know? I'm a firm believer in doing things right the first time and between you and me? The first half of this was almost a complete and utter failure, because I wasn't feeling it.**

 **Thank god for Kochi huh? Burglen was his baby.  
**

 **Anyways, here we are. Back at it again, back on that dusty road. Fasten your seat belts cause it's bout to get bumpy.  
**

 **By the way, if the hours get a little confusing. Remember that Burglen is taking place as the Diet summons kicked off.**

 **EDIT: Wow, how could I forget to mention this? The new cover art was done for me by an artist named Crowbar. She also did my profile picture. Highly recommend you commission her if you ever want to really see something come to life. You can find her site at paintingsfromouterspace.**

 **Just make you don't forget your dot com people!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18: Liberty Call**

"For _over 221 years our Corps has done two things for this great Nation. We make Marines, and we win battles."_

Gen. Charles C. Krulak, USMC (CMC); 5 May 1997

 **DECEMBER 14TH, 1300 HOURS, BURGLEN, SPECIAL REGION  
**

It all happened in a blur. Van Hauser and his squad dove for cover, the former shooting off a M203 grenade before throwing himself behind a wooden barrel. He looked back at Boyd as the explosion went off, the southerner kneeling behind the MRAP and taking pot shots at God knows what.

"I fucking told you they were here!"

"You don't- Shit!" He quickly dove behind the vehicle, barely avoiding an arrow shot straight at him.

"Motherfuckers!"

Boyd popped out and snapped a shot off, followed by what sounded like a scream. The lieutenant peeked from behind the barrel, his eyes meeting the archer's falling body as it hit the ground with a thud.

"Yeah! Fuck you, asshole! I still got it!"

Van Hauser rolled his eyes. He took a second to reload his 40mm, then sent off another round into a random house. An explosion, and a few bodies flying off a window later, he ducked back down with a smirk.

Boyd couldn't help but laugh. He took another shot before looking at the lieutenant once more. "Hey just like old times, eh, William!?"

Van Hauser shook his head as he opened his 203's chamber, the empty shell clanging to the ground with a trail of smoke. "I didn't like it then." He paused as he grabbed another grenade and shoved it inside. "And I sure as fuck don't like it now! So focus on killing the bad guys, huh!?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Shit, there's more of 'em!"

The two ducked back down, bolts and arrows embedding themselves on the barrel and bouncing off the MRAP. Boyd was about to shoot back, but the vehicle's turret gunner got them first, gunning down the archers with relative ease.

"You know, Will, we could just rush these fuckers and be done with it!"

"Yeah?! What about the Japs?!" He turned his head and glared at the Japanese for a moment, Boyd's eyes following as well. As opposed to the Marines, green-clad soldiers weren't doing all that good. More than a few seemed too eager, probably enough to get them killed. Those clunky Type 64 rifles didn't help much either. Not only they were huge, but they had a tendency to jam. A lot.

"Well, fucking boots better learn from us!"

No sooner he finished, a group of nearly twenty bandits rushed out from a few houses, and charged down the road with swords and shields. Not a second later, the entirety of the Coalition's fire rained on them, and all that was left was a pile of bodies and scattered red paste.

The noise of gunshots died out, and Van Hauser popped up again to scan the road through his RCO. Mangled bodies left, right and centre, but it looked clear enough. He turned back to the southerner, who gave him an evil smirk.

Time to flush the rats out.

Nielsen and the Japanese officer poked out from behind their cover, the former whistling at Van Hauser to call his attention. A hand sign later, the three ran behind the MRAP, the lieutenant fist-bumping Boyd along the way.

Once they got settled in, Nielsen began to yell. "Alright, we're taking the fight to them! We split off, we go left, Japanese go right! We clear house by house, and RV with the other two teams in the town centre, rah?!"

"Rah!"

"I'll take first squad through the street. Get your guys on the back yards, and watch our asses. Oh, and watch out for the sheds."

"Think they got any more nasty surprises?!"

"Yeah, probably, keep your eyes peeled!"

"You got it." Van Hauser turned to Boyd and nodded, then at the rest of his squad. "Alright! Second squad, on me, let's go!" He stood up and jogged to the left, Boyd and a few others falling behind.

"Wait- where're we going?"

"To kick some ass, boot! Come, on!"

They all stacked up behind a wooden fence, their guns pointing at the row of gardens behind every house. Van Hauser noted the sheds, and made a mental note to grenade each and every one of them to the ground.

Right before he gave the order to advance, the Lieutenant's voice boomed through the comms.

"Alright! We've got an entire settlement's worth of assholes standing between us and, going home! We gotta clean up all this shit, and RV with the Japs in the town centre by that bridge! Once we do that, it's smooth sailing, gentlemen! Squad One will clear the first house. Second, go for the next. We leapfrog and cover each other, oorah?!"

An echo of 'RAH!'s boomed through the left side of the village, every Marine now pumped up for the job. With the two shotgunners taking point, the lieutenant signaled the advance, passing by the first house as the other team mopped it up.

Once the shout of "Clear!" rang out, Second Squad moved into the next house, finding nothing but dead bodies and shot up walls.

"Hey, check this out." Boyd pointed at a body, prompting Van Hauser and a few others to walk closer and take a look. It was a woman, probably in her young twenties, throat slit from end to end, and cat ears poking up her head.

"What with her?"

"Didn't that baby have cat ears?"

They all took a moment to remember. "...shit, I think it did."

William stared down at her, his face turning into an angry scowl.

"Motherfuckers."

His trail of thought was interrupted by Nielsen speaking through the boom mic. "Everything okay in there? You all went silent."

He shook his head and sighed, then brought a hand to the transmitter. "Uh, yeah, it's clear. We uh... found the mother."

"...shit. Okay, we're going into the third house, stand by."

Second squad took positions by the doors and windows, covering First as they advanced through the empty streets. Beside them, a Japanese team was doing the same, albeit at a slower pace.

The Marines didn't fault them for the setback, though. They all had been boots once, and certainly didn't do things this smooth back in Iraq. Van Hauser kept an eye on them as they stormed another house, rushing in with bayonets fixed.

"They pulled out bayonets? What the fuck?"

"Dude, those guns they have might as well be spears. Look at 'em! They're bigger than they are!"

A few Marines laughed for a moment, before a single gunshot boomed from the Japanese side. Everyone in Van Hauser's squad stiffened up, eyes down their sights and pointing at the road. A few moments later, the Lieutenant's voice came through the radio.

"We're clear here. Jap officer says it was a mercy kill."

"Roger. We're moving." The lieutenant put his hand back on the M4, and waved his head at the back door. "Let's go."

The leapfrogging process repeated itself. Squad one cleared while Second covered them, then vice versa. This went on for about three more buildings, until the lieutenant's team came across the first shed.

This time, First Squad moved up the house, leaving Second to deal with the shed. The idea was to hit both places simultaneously, thus nullifying any surprises. The place was big enough to hold several people, probably even a bigger creature, if they were unlucky.

"We're on point. Waiting on you, sir."

"Alright. We go in on my mark. On three. One."

The shotgunners pumped their 870's, the shells falling on the ground with their trademark 'clank'.

"Two."

"Knock knock, mother fuckers!"

"Three! Go!"

The shotgunners kicked the door and rushed into the shed, finding the place mostly empty. There was a stack of hay in a corner, with what looked like bed covers on top, and an oil lamp sitting beside it.

Someone used to live here.

The moment the Marines lowered their guard, a dark blur fell from the ceiling, hitting one of the Americans in the head and scaring the others. A cry of pain followed, and gunshots burst into whatever fell down. Another cry later, the cloaked assailant fell flat on the downed Marine, blood seeping all over the floor.

Van Hauser quickly grabbed and tossed the attacker away. "Hey, you alright?!"

"Aargh... fuck! My head..." The Marine staggered on his feet, still dazed. "What the fuck happened?"

"Fucker got the jump on us. You hurt?"

He took a moment to check himself. Other than being covered in blood, he looked fine. "Just... dazed, I guess."

"Okay, good. Hold on." William walked up behind him and began pushing and pulling on his back plate.

"Uh... sir? What're you doing?"

"Got a knife stuck here, kid. Boyd, gimme a hand here."

Between the two, the knife was removed with relative ease. After giving the all clear, the house by house process resumed.

At around two thirds of the way, Lieutenant Nielsen's voice came through the comms again, sounding a bit annoyed.

"Van Hauser, I need to borrow two of your men. The Japanese are lagging behind."

"Uh, sure. Let us get this house and I send them over." He turned back to his men. "Okay, Romero and Grant, you two go with the Japs after we're done here."

"Err."

"Right. Lets get this shit over with. Stack up."

The squad took positions by the door, a few walking up to a window on the side. On the count of three, they burst into the building, guns trained on every corner.

Van Hauser scanned the room left to right. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, he moved his hand to the radio, and began to transmit the all clear.

Suddenly, a sharp snap of wood caught his attention. From a barrel beside him, a horn-helmeted man jumped out, axe in hand and covered in something yellow. He gave a mad battle cry while in mid air, then tripped on the edge of said barrel and fell face first on the ground.

"WOAH! WHAT THE FUCK?!"

All guns were on him. He tried to stand up, but the goo covering was too slippery, even against solid dirt. The moment he reached for his axe, Boyd and the others opened up, ending the man's pathetic attempt.

"Everyone okay?"

"Yeah. Fuck, that scared me."

Boyd walked up to the marauder and poked him with his rifle. He wasn't moving.

"Dude, is that butter?"

He knelt down to get a closer look. "Dunno, but sure smells like it."

"Man, I'm hungry. Anyone saw bread around here?"

"Everything okay in there?" Nielsen's voice came through the radio again. Van Hauser took a breath before answering.

"Yeah, we're fine. Some asshole covered in butter jumped out of a barrel. We're clear."

"...Covered in butter?"

"Yeah... Japs still want those men?"

"Uh, sure. I'll tell their officer they're on the way."

The rest of the way was uneventful, and they all met up in the town centre without much trouble. The Japanese took a bit longer, their lack of experience showing just as expected.

Once all teams were present, including the two flanking forces that split off earlier on, Nielsen and the Japanese officer set their sights on the manor house, just a few hundred yards across the bridge.

However, that would wait. After setting up a proper perimeter, both Marines and Japanese took a moment to breathe, readjust their gear and replenish ammunition. The convoy drove in with them, a few soldiers taking out supplies while the medics and corpsmen checked on whoever had been hurt.

Meanwhile, a group of Japanese soldiers began collecting the bodies, and placing them together in a row beside the road. Van Hauser stepped up to them, finding the supposed mother among the others.

Only one in five belonged to a raider. The rest, for what he could gather, were civilians. Men and women, young and old, but all beastmen. Cats, bunnies, pigs, even a wolf-man, but not a single human. Only the marauders fit that bill.

He pulled down his skull balaclava and spat out the gum, then light on a cigarette to calm his nerves.

At least the baby was safe.

He took a few seconds to enjoy it, before Nielsen put a hand in the air and began spinning it around. Time to go.

Van Hauser took a last drag, and dropped the butt on the ground, puffing out the smoke as he walked back into the humvee.

"Whad'ya know Boyd, you can finally be useful again!" Van Hauser laughed as the corporal jumped in, taking the front seat.

Without turning around, Boyd merely stuck his middle finger up. "Says the guy wearing a Ghost mask. Dude, take that off, you make me look bad."

"Fuck you, you know it's scary."

"Yeah, right. Fucking Butterlord in that house didn't seem scared by it."

"Oh come on, that shithead didn't even have time to look. All he did was 'AAARGH!' and then splat."

"Dog, you're lucky Butterlord was an idiot. He would've kicked your ass if I wasn't there."

"Bullshit, I could take him."

"Bullshit? Alright, well, I'll be sure to write that on your fucking tombstone if you get iced out here."

Boyd let his rifle rest on the floor as he started forming a rectangle with his hands.

"'Here lies William Van Hauser. Got knocked the fuck out like a scrub, by Dave the Barbarian, covered in butter'. Last words, 'I could take him'." He paused and turned around, meeting the lieutenant's eyes with a shit eating grin. "Sound about right?"

"Yeah. Sounds a hell of a lot better than 'here lies a family fucker. Got shot by uncle while porking his cousin'."

Before Boyd could respond, Nielsen's voice rang through the radio. "Right, gents, we move on to phase two. Eyes open."

The convoy roared back to life and drove across the bridge, the MRAP spearheading the advance. Once on the other side, a few vehicles began splitting off, commencing yet another encirclement on the fortified manor.

Unlike the rest of the town, the manor house was on a completely different level, in both architecture, defensive capability, and sheer size. Surrounded by stone walls, the not-quite-castle stood three stories high, with a watchtower in a corner, and what looked like a small stable beside a tall pair of wooden gates.

Gates that, for what the Marines guessed, had never been so tightly closed.

It was also fairly close to the river, the left side walls barely touching the shoreline. A typical defensive strategy from medieval times.

To it's right, on a small hill, stood a large windmill, with a big wooden barn beside it. A narrow dirt path connected it to the main road, while a second, far wider and obviously better kept, led straight to the manor's gates.

"We're taking on the mill first. Uh, Second, wanna go at it? You're good with barns."

Van Hauser picked up the comms, taking a quick glance at Boyd before answering. "Sure thing."

"Alright. I'm sending a Japanese team to back you up. Teach 'em how we do things, rah?"

"...Will they call me Senpai?"

Nielsen gave an annoyed groan. "Just get it done."

"Errr!"

* * *

 **1800 HOURS JAPANESE FOREIGN MINISTRY BUILDING**

Piña and Bozes sat in silence as they continued to wait, Shino and Tomita sitting beside them and writing on their clipboards.

Everything had been proceeding rather smoothly so far. The American Ambassador, Mister Kroger, had been a refreshing change of pace for the royal pair. He was a cheerful looking old man, his black suit and red tie matching well with the glasses and carefully trimmed greying moustache. With a balding head and the obvious portly features, he looked more like a jolly old trader than anything else.

The Japanese representatives had also been pleasant to converse with. Unlike Kroger, Senior Vice Minister Reiko Shirayuri and Mister Koji Sugawara were a great deal younger. Shirayuri was obviously more experienced, and well versed to the game of politics, while Sugawara was clearly a recent academy graduate. Either way, like Kroger, they had come into the meeting knowing exactly what they wanted.

Answers, a sense of stability and order. An end state that both the Royals could agree on.

With introductions out of the way, Shino and Tomita took the roles of translators, taking turns to translate back and forth between the two languages. Most of the talks had been carried out by the Japanese, Kroger merely nodding and listening intently as he took notes. It made sense, the Japanese had suffered a great deal more than the Americans.

It was here that the royals learned exactly why America was there. Both nations had a mutual defense treaty, which been in place for a long time prior to the gate's opening. Should Japan ever need assistance, both military or otherwise, America was to immediately provide aid in whatever way it could, via its nearby bastions. Japan would also do the same, should the need arise. They were allies both strategic and economical.

And, as the two feared, the Marines were only a fraction of what Japan's ally could bring to bear.

Only a fraction. The only chance to stop the rest was on them. It was terrifying, but they also couldn't help but admire the situation. In a way, this alliance reminded them of what the Empire and its vassal states were supposed to be, what they were supposed to do.

Supposed to. Sending in the vassal states to share in the slaughter hardly counted as mutual assistance.

Again, everything had been proceeding smoothly, until a young man in a suit walked in, and muttered something to the Earth representatives. Whatever it was, it was urgent. The ambassadors excused themselves, and hastily walked out with the man behind them.

The royals and the Japanese troops just sat there, waiting for what seemed like an eternity. Piña asked the soldiers what was going on, and the two merely shrugged. They were just as clueless as they were.

Finally, Kroger and the two Foreign Ministry representatives came back. Unlike before, though, they seemed different. Their dispositions had changed dramatically, down to their body language. Kroger in particular had completely lost his demeanour, having it replaced by a serious, almost sombre expression.

Once the Earth officials sat down, they stared across at the Imperials with unblinking eyes. Kroger took the lead this time, taking off his glasses before folding his hands and leaning in. As Shino began to translate, both Royals' blood felt like it had frozen as the words hit them.

"We just received word from our superiors. The situation has changed dramatically, and not for the better."

As ranking official between the two, Piña had been the one to ask. What happened? Did the Empire make a move in their absence?

This time, Tomita translated both Piña's questions and Reiko's response. The answers were simple, and it shocked both royals to the core.

Slavery, the mistreating of other species, the long list of human right's violations. If the Empire had been in a hole before, this information dug that hole deeper. Far, far deeper.

Not only were the Japanese and Americans concerned, but the entire world who watched the Diet summons was, as well.

The "Nations of the Free World" were angry, a large governing body called the United Nations now keeping a watchful eye on the campaign.

According to Kroger, representatives from this governing body would be joining the Coalition. But they wouldn't be alone, a united army of every nation in their world would come through the Gate, and would be ready at a moment's notice to invade the Empire.

Or at least that's what Piña understood. In truth, a unit comprised of doctors, teachers and peacekeepers would be sent in, and mandated to assist the Japanese and Americans with relief efforts.

All of this, regardless of what it really was, terrified Piña and Bozes. For a moment, it really felt like all was lost. They understood the situation for what it was, almost hopeless.

But it wasn't, at least not yet, and Reiko was quick to remind them of this. It was up to them now, they would have to use their influence to sway the Emperor and senate, and find a way to end this war before it was too late.

It was either that, or be destroyed.

As far as the terms of the agreement were concerned, both Kroger and the two representatives would need to be granted protection in the form of a temporary embassy. From there they could work with Piña and any other governing officials, and steer them towards the path of peace.

Should the embassy come under attack however, in Kroger's words, "Peace would be off the table, and Earth would not only dispose the Emperor off his position of power, but anyone else who sympathized with him. It wouldn't be pretty, and the Capital would no doubt be in ruins by the time everything was done."

He said this with a calm face, his eyes staring directly into Piña's all the while. "We have done it before, princess, and we can do it again, if we have to."

Sugawara and Shirayuri nodded in agreement.

In the end, Piña and Bozes merely agreed. They had no choice. With the terms of the agreement signed, the two were sent on their way, Shino and Tomita lagging behind to hand in some papers.

As they made their way down the hallways, Bozes leaned in towards Piña, and began to whisper.

"Do you think your father will listen?"

The redhead struggled to form a reply, still shaken from before. "I... am not sure. I just hope he can see reason, see that we cannot possibly hope to win this war."

"You'll have to deal with Zorzal, though. Diabo, on the other hand..."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that. I hope Father isn't swayed by him. As for Diabo... your guess is as good as mine."

"But you know your father will listen to Zorzal first. He is second in line to the throne."

Piña sighed. "I know, but he is greedy, and foolish. I may be young, perhaps naive at times, but even I can see more clearly than him."

The pair continued to walk down the final hallway, deep in thought.

"What of the Horsemen?"

The princess blinked and cocked her head to the side. "What of them?"

"They could be a powerful ally for us. They work closely with Itami, and were the ones who took the brunt of the Italica raid. They are even held in high regard by clan Formal, too." She paused and almost smiled. "No doubt their soldiers have been swayed greatly by the maids."

Piña couldn't help but smile as well, that night's events playing in her mind. "They did make quite an impression..." She paused as she continued reminiscing, another thought crossing her mind. "I did notice the Medusa and one of the dragon fighters staring at each other. Odd, isn't it?"

"I doubt he knows any better."

"They are different, Bozes. They don't care about race, honor or nobility. Lieutenant Aldritch said it himself, to them, everyone is equal."

"Indeed, all the more reason to get on their good side."

As the group made its way outside into the slowly dimming winter air, Piña stopped. She sighed before placing a hand on Bozes's shoulder. "But they're soldiers. Equality or not, they answer only to their superiors."

"Yes, but they seem to hold a great deal of influence. Your highness, if we are to truly save the Empire, we need to use every available means. Aldritch seems like a calm and collected leader. Converse with him, learn from him as he learns from you. If you can at least get to know him, perhaps he'll open up more, and do what he can to aid us."

The blonde's face took on a serious expression. "With the dragon fighters on our side, we could accomplish great things, your majesty."

The princess stood there for a few moments, reflecting on her second's words. Finally she sighed, and nodded with a smile. "Then it shall be so. I will talk to him."

Bozes couldn't help but giggle as they boarded the bus, Shino and Tomita joining up behind them. She leaned closer and whispered into her ear. "Oh please, do not treat it as so much of a chore. I've seen how you look at him, he is rather dashing, in his own way, is he not?"

As they sat down, Piña's face turned red. She quickly turned to the window to hide her embarrassment. "No, you are mistaken. There is nothing there."

"Oh, there isn't? Think of it, the leader of the Rose Knights, a princess in distress, and then there he comes. Her knight in shining armor, clad in green atop his iron chariot, and his Order right behind him. Together they join forces, and fight side by side." Bozes giggled once more. "With the exception of the iron chariots, it does sound like a nice tale, doesn't it?"

Piña continued to look out her window, a small smile forming on her face unknowingly. "Sounds like something bards would sing about... But you mistake my desire to want to save the Empire for the desire to live out my own fantasies. It's not like that."

"If you say so, your highness."

The princess merely sighed and stared out the window, leaning back on her seat. Bozes looked at her for a moment, then dug a hand into her dress. "Your highness, perhaps I have something that can cheer you up."

In moments, the blonde produced a small zip lock bag, holding it up and shaking the contents. Piña's eyes lit up immediately.

Freedom Cookies.

"You- you brought them!"

As the royal pair dug into their new found favorite treat, all their previous worries seemed to die out.

The simple things in life.

* * *

 **BURGLEN**

"Hey, sir?" Boyd butted into the transmission. "You know your medieval history, right?"

"Yeah. What with it?"

"Any idea on the range of these bowmen?"

"Uh... I guess a hundred yards, give or take? Maybe two hundred, but that's for volleys and whatnot."

"Figured, tango."

The small strike force split off from the convoy, taking a right turn towards the barn and mill. As per the Lieutenant's recommendation, Boyd and the Japanese designated marksmen set up shop further back, ever so slightly behind the hundred yards, while the others pressed on.

The vehicles, two humvees and a Komatsu, formed in a semi-circle around the buildings, their right sides and machine gun turrets facing the barn's front door. The drivers killed the engines as the infantry stepped off, quickly taking cover behind the vehicles.

Van Hauser walked over to the Japanese NCO, a Sergeant Yamada that clearly knew zero English. The two knelt down behind the Komatsu, with a random Japanese private translating back and forth.

Or, rather, attempting to do so. Between the crappy understanding of the language, and thick accent, all William managed to understand was nonsense. He frowned in frustration, repeating his plan all over again, but slower.

Of course, the results were no different. Yamada simply stared at him confused, tilting his head like saying 'what the hell is he talking about?'

The American simply groaned. No sooner he opened his mouth, an loud noise of breaking wood came from the barn. The doors shattered, and with an inhuman, ear-shattering roar, a huge creature walked out.

An ogre, just as fat as it was tall, sauntered into the sunlight, wielding what looked like a tree trunk as weapon. It stopped before the Marines, it's single eye going left and right.

Against basic common sense, nobody opened fire. The Japanese were caught off guard, and simply stared at the creature with frightful eyes. The Americans, on the other hand were too confused by the whole situation, and simply kept their guns pointed at the beast.

The Ogre began to laugh, it's jagged, rotten teeth clearly visible. Unbelievably enough, the creature spoke up, chunks of spit coming off with every word.

"Your progress ends here! For I am the Great Krazgar, and I will tear you limb from li-"

BOOM.

The ogre's top half shattered in cloud of smoke and gore, bits splattering in every direction. The remaining half of the body simple fell backwards, earth shaking as it hit the ground.

Everyone simply stared for a moment, then followed the dim trail of smoke leading to the ogre. All eyes fell on a single Japanese soldier, Panzerfaust in hand, and looking completely confused.

"... _Nani_?"

Van Hauser kept staring. He didn't remember saying anything, or hearing any order for that to happen.

"Alright... Who ordered Bazooka Joe here to fire the goddamn rocket launcher?"

Nobody said a word. Van Hauser just sighed, bringing a hand to his face.

"...Nobody did. Okay. Well, uh... good looking kid, but next time give someone a god damn warning before you go firing rockets over people's heads." He walked over and patted the soldier on the shoulder, before walking back to his squad. They all looked back at him, a few giggling nervously.

"Uh... what now?"

"Fuck it. Come on, we'll do this ourselves, Japs can watch."

The barn and mill proved to be empty. Apparently the ogre had the brilliant idea to go alone, not surprising, given the stereotype. After having quick look around, the Marines just boarded their humvees and left, giving the all clear to Nielsen before leaving the Japs to mop up the mess.

By the time they arrived to the manor, things had changed for the better. Turning the ogre into red paste did more than just startle the raiders, and within minutes, the gates were opened. Van Hauser and his squad dismounted the vehicles, and were greeted by the sight of surrendering soldiers.

These, as opposed to those in the village, were far better equipped. They wore decorated plate armour, thick cloaks on their backs, and full faced helmets, adorned with feathers and golden etchings. They all stood in line, their weapons on the ground, with a much more decorated man standing before them.

William and the others walked forward, their rifles' safeties off and ready for anything. He jogged up to the Lieutenant, who was headed straight for the apparent leader.

"Your strength is remarkable, foreigners." he began, his face stoic and neutral, and well waxed moustache jiggling with every word. "I know when I am defeated, and I surrender to you." He slowly pulled out his sword, and impaled it into the ground.

Everyone kept their guns trained on them, and Nielsen turned to Van Hauser for a rough translation.

"Ask him if that's all of them."

He stepped up to the mustached man, glaring daggers and suppressing an urge to spit on his face. "Is this all of you?"

The man remained silent. Van Hauser stepped closer and shoved the gun straight between his eyes. "You know what happens when this goes 'boom'? Answer me."

The leader's iron façade began to falter, a bead of sweat running down his forehead.

"Y-yes. That's all of us."

"They better be." He turned to the Lieutenant and nodded, and with a quick hand motion, the Marines moved in.

While a strike team cleared up the manor house, William and the others rounded up the prisoners, restraining them and lining them up outside the walls. The officers went off to their vehicles, surely to radio in the operation's success.

The strike team came back a few minutes later, finding nothing but wagons full of loot. Bags full of gold, clothes, wine, and a surprising number of barrels with butter, among other things.

Spoils of war, a rotten one at that.

Van Hauser had just finished zip-tying the last raider when Nielsen walked up to him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Van Hauser you doing good?"

The lieutenant bottled up his anger, and looked up to the lieutenant with his usual, relaxed demeanour. "Yeah, sure."

"Okay. I just had a talk with the CP. They want us to question this guy."

"So?"

"I need you to translate for me, but I need to know if you're up for it."

"What do you-?"

"Don't play coy. You shoved a gun on the guy's head, and almost shot him."

"I wasn't gonna-"

"Yes, you were. Your finger was on the fucking trigger. I know it's been a shit day, but we can't afford to let loose. Not now and especially with junior Marine around. So I ask again, can you do it?"

"Yeah."

"Good." He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered one to the NCO. "Smoke one, it'll do you good. And, for fuck's sake, take off that stupid ghost mask."

The two walked into the manor courtyard, then off to the left into a little servants' house. The man in question was sitting on a chair in the middle of the room, his armour removed, and guarded by Marines and JSDF personnel. With them was the Japanese officer, who was laying back on a wall waiting on the Americans. He merely nodded as the two entered the house.

Van Hauser couldn't help but glare.

"Okay," began Nielsen, "let's get this over with. Ask for his name."

Just like before, Van Hauser stepped forward, the man's face twitching ever so slightly. "What's your name?"

"I am Captain Sigvald, commander of this company."

Van Hauser turned to Nielsen, relaying the information. "His name is Sigvald. He claims to command this 'company'."

The lieutenant frowned. "Mercenaries. I think I know where this is going. Ask him who hired him, and why."

William's eye twitched for a second, earning him a look from his commander. He turned back to Sigvald, who just stared nervously and tried to compose himself. "Who hired you?"

The Captain was hesitant for a moment, but quickly figured he'd be safer if he talked. A quick look at the Marine's carbine was enough to change his mind. "We were contracted by the Kingdom of Elbe, and were told to join their army in Alnus Hill. But the king died, and we weren't paid."

Van Hauser narrowed his eyes. "Then why did you attack Burglen?"

Sigvald took a moment before replying. "My men were hungry, and the village had food."

"So you turned to banditry, and took it."

"We had no choice. The beas-" he quickly stopped and corrected himself, "the peasants refused to hand it over."

The grip on his weapon tightened as he leaned closer, his face shifting into an angrier scowl. "We both know that's bullcrap, so unless you want to end like your ogre friend, you better talk. Why did you kill them?"

"W-we needed the food."

"Really? You rounded up and executed dozens, to get food?"

"I don't know what you-"

"DON'T FUCK WITH US!" Van Hauser shouted, his left hand smacking the commander's face and ruining his perfect mustache. "We saw the fucking bodies, asshole!"

"Hey!" Nielsen stepped up and placed a hand on William's shoulder. "Calm it down Marine."

He silently stared at the officer, doing his best to bottle up again.

"Calm down, or you're out of here, understood? What did he say?"

Van Hauser nodded and looked back at a dazed, sore Sigvald, gritting his teeth before replying. "He said they were hired by the Kingdom of Elbe, but never got paid, and turned to banditry."

"...Fuck. I had a feeling that would happen."

"What do we do, then?"

"Let's see what else we can get out of him, then we radio Alnus. Can I trust you'll contain yourself?"

Van Hauser merely nodded again.

"Good. Ask where are the remaining civilians."

"You think there's more of 'em?"

The two Marines turned to the Mercenary. "There better be."

Van Hauser cleared his throat before switching back to the local language. "Okay, shithead. You may want to choose your words carefully. Where are the other civilians?"

The man gave him a quizzical, yet nervous look. "Other?"

"Yes, 'other'. Where did you take them?"

"We didn't take anyone."

"Bullshit. I know what you cocksuckers do, you raid villages and take women as sex slaves. Where. Are. They?"

Sigvald merely chuckled, making the lieutenant nearly snap.

"What's so funny, asshole?"

"Hah, you strangers think they're worth it?"

"Worth what?"

"You are so naive. Why do you care for that cross-bred filth?"

"What did you just say?!" William walked over and grabbed him by the shirt, lifting him up to his face.

"MARINE!"

"One moment. What did you fucking say?!"

"Let him go, now!"

The Mercenary kept laughing. "So what they said is true, you do care for them."

"Where are they?!"

"Too bad..."

"STAND DOWN, NOW!"

"WHERE ARE THEY?!"

"Where their kind deserves to be. Dead."

It all happened in a blur. Sigvald was thrown off the chair, the rifle's stock crushing his cheek and nose. No sooner he hit the floor, Van Hauser jumped down and punched, prompting a trail of blood to ooze from the man's nose.

"MOTHER FUCKER! YOU SICK MOTHER FUCKER"

The Japanese merely stood awestruck as the Marines took action, throwing themselves on the lieutenant and trying to pull him off.

"MARINE, STAND THE FUCK DOWN!"

"DUDE, LET HIM GO!"

"FUCKING GET OFF ME! HE AIN'T WORTH SHIT!"

"LET HIM FUCKING GO!"

"I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU! DO YOU HEAR ME, COCKSUCKER?!"

"YOU WON'T DO SHIT, VAN HAUSER! LET GO!"

"WE RUN THIS PLACE, ASSHOLE! WE'LL FUCKING KILL ALL OF YOU!"

Eventually his strength gave in, and the combined efforts of the Marines peeled him off the mercenary. The man laid down on his back, his breath accelerated and ruined mustache caked in his own blood.

Van Hauser was dragged to a wall, held in place by three Marines as he began to calm down. He glared daggers at the captain, who slowly tried to sit down. A Japanese soldier walked up to him with a piece of cloth, and tentatively offered it to the bleeding man. He merely took it and pressed it on his nose, wincing at the pain.

Meanwhile, Nielsen seemed to be arguing with the Japanese officer. They murmured back and forth for a few moments, then the latter nodded, and said something to his men. They all walked outside the house, taking the wounded Sigvald with them.

The lieutenant walked up to Van Hauser, offering him a hand to help him stand. The others let him go, and he stood up on his feet. He looked around, part angry, part ashamed at what just transpired, before locking eyes with the officer.

"You guys go have a smoke, it's been a long day for all of us. I can handle this."

The three merely nodded and walked off, closing the door behind them and leaving the lieutenant alone with Nielsen.

Nielsen took of his eight-point and ran a hand through his hair, trying to find proper words that didn't lead to an ass chewing. He sighed, then spoke up in a friendly tone.

"Look, William... I know, alright? I know this whole world is fucked up, and that guy had it coming. I'll give you that. But that crap you pulled? We know it doesn't fly, not here, or anywhere. We still have a professional standard to uphold." He paused for a moment, Van Hauser simply looking down. "That shit isn't what professionals do, let alone veteran officers like you. We're better men than these fuckers, and that means we don't stoop down to their level, you should know this by now.

He took a second to get another cigarette, and offered it to Van Hauser. "Smoke it."

Van Hauser met his eyes as he grabbed the paper casing, bringing it up to his mouth and letting the officer light it for him.

"I get that you're angry, we all are, but save it for later. We can't let ourselves loose just like that, we have to focus our anger, I'm surprised I have to even tell you this. You know damn well how we do business."

He puffed out the smoke and put the cigarette down. "Controlled chaos."

"Precisely. See, you understand this, which tells me you know you fucked up. It might have felt good, or even necessary, but now what? You probably broke his jaw, and Command will be all over us when he can't talk. At least you put the fear of God into him."

Van Hauser took another drag before finally answering. " I just... I just want to make things different here. I'm sick and tired of feeling like we can't do shit, that all we do is waste our time."

"I want to help these people, too, William. Hell, most of us do, but it's a process, and we can't save everyone. You and I both know that. We can only do so much, be so many places at a time, but we will make a difference. We will make things right, but until then, we just gotta take it in stride.

"We got a long, rough road ahead of us, and I have no doubt we still have a lot more fucked up shit to run into. I need to know that the Marine to my left and right are going to do exactly what they need to do, and when they need to do it."

Nielsen placed a hand on his shoulder, giving him an encouraging smile. "You good?"

The Marine merely nodded, his eyes locking with his officer's once again. "Yeah, yeah I'm good."

"Good."

The pair walked out of the manor, finding their Humvees waiting outside. Marines and JSDF soldiers busied themselves left and right, and Boyd walked up to them with a cheery grin.

"Hell of a fight here, huh?"

"Yup. Good thing you boys are all okay."

"A few embarrassing close calls, eh, Butterlord?"

"Fuck you, Boyd."

Nielsen chuckled. Typical Marines. "Listen, you guys are done here. Grab your shit and go head back to Alnus, I need to stay here and help the Japs mop up."

"Rah, sir. We'll get a welcoming party for you later."

"You better do. Oh, and William, no detours. Head straight back, and take that baby with you. The Japs kept him in a LAV back in the village. Tell them to go with you."

"Roger."

With that, Van Hauser rallied his menand boarded the truck, leaving Nielsen to do his thing. They drove back to the town centre, where the Japanese private from before was tending to the baby. They found him with a medic, talking as the little boy slept in his arms. After exchanging pleasantries and orders, the two got on the LAV and drove off behind the convoy.

 **XXXXXX**

 _Sometime later..._

The trip back to Alnus was mostly quiet. Each man had his own thoughts about what had just happened, and nobody had the energy to say much. They just keep their eyes on the road, and gazed out their windows at the passing countryside beyond.

But, as expected, that didn't roll for long.

"So, how's everyone doing?" Boyd turned back from his window, looking around the humvee as he tried to break the awkward silence. "That was uh... hell of a lot worse than what we thought it'd be, huh?"

Van Hauser kept peering out the front window as he responded. "Yeah, understatement of the century."

"Yeah, no shit huh?" He quickly scrambled his brain for thoughts, anything to keep the conversation going. "Well, least we got that kid. That was some real Medal of Honor shit that Jap pulled off."

"Yeah, pretty fucking impressive."

"They handled themselves out there pretty well too. Shit, I..." Boyd paused to spit into his dip bottle. "I think I might have been wrong about 'em. Maybe they ain't so bad after all."

"Told you. They're just... new at it."

"Yeah, they are."

Things went silent for a few moments before Van Hauser patted the driver on the shoulder. "Good shit out there, kid. Not bad, for a boot."

Some tired chuckles ushered forth from the other Marines, while shit eating grin spread on the driver's face. "Thank you, sir."

"Still a fucking boot though."

More laughter before Van Hauser reached back and gave Boyd a tap on the knee. "Hey, play some shit. The silence is killing me."

Boyd merely chuckled before taking his phone out, placing in the center of the cabin. He paused for a moment to take out a small bluetooth speaker to accompany it.

"Hope ya'll don't mind a lil' southern hospitalit-"

"Just play something, God damnit."

"Right."

* * *

 **Boyd's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 23: Luke Bryant "That's My Kinda Night"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

As the song began to play in earnest, Boyd began to hoop and holler, clapping his hands to the beat of the music.

 _I got that real good feel good stuff_  
 _Up under the seat of my big black jacked up truck_  
 _Rollin' on 35s_  
 _Pretty girl by my side_

"Now this right here! This is that good shit!"

 _You got that sun tan skirt and boots_  
 _Waiting on you to look my way and scoot_  
 _Your little hot self over here_  
 _Girl hand me another beer, yeah!_

Van Hauser merely rolled his eyes as he went back to staring out his window, trying to ignore the dancing that the other Marines had lapsed into.

"Fucking Southern boy."

 _Gonna sound like a winner, when I lay you down and love you right_  
 _Yeah, that's my kind of night!_

* * *

 **1900 HOURS, JAPAN, EN ROUTE TO DOWNTOWN TOKYO  
**

Once the diet summons had concluded, Diplomatic Security had been nothing short of flabbergasted at the large amount of finger pointing and mud slinging. Even the Public Safety agents had been taken aback, the events far surpassing their expectations. That being said, nobody wanted to take any chances, and orders came down to swap all military uniforms for civilian clothes.

Kincaid folded his arms and sighed in content as he relaxed against the familiar fur of his bomber jacket, gazing out his window as he got comfortable. After hours of wearing their uniforms and the stress the Diet summons brought, the Marines were nothing short of ecstatic to change into their civilian clothes. For such an occasion all the Marines had brought their Sunday's best, a fact not lost on both the confused looking Japanese troops, and Special Region guests.

As one would figure, Wilkes and Benitez stood out like sore, black thumbs.

The former chose a bright orange windbreaker, which stood out in stark contrast against his blue tropical bucket hat, tri color camouflaged pants, red chucks, and black shirt. The latter, a Captain America jacket with simple black pants, white chucks and a black beanie.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Marines had gone for a more subtle approach. Kincaid wore his bomber jacket and jeans, Elton, a simple brown leather jacket with black pants, and Aldritch somehow copying Elton's look altogether.

As the Marines liked to say, "great dressers flock together."

Meanwhile, an estranged looking Aldritch rubbed his forehead with closed eyes, silently cringing at the motley tank crew. The officer made a mental note to scold himself later for not having inspected their civilian clothes earlier.

Mari and Itami had gone for simple attire as well, Shino and Tomita doing the same upon their return. While certainly a bit different to what the Americans were used to, they blended in perfectly with the Japanese around them. Unlike two certain tankers.

The Special Region girls had simply looked on in curiosity, Rory in particular.

Once everyone changed over, the group walked out of the Diet building and met up with the waiting SUVs and bus. Piña and Bozes were also there, sitting on the bus' front seats and stuffing themselves with freedom cookies.

Once again, the DS and Public Safety agents divided the group in two, and Kincaid yawned as he walked to the SUV.

With no Mari to nag him, the gunner found himself more than content as he stared out his window. It had been a quiet ride so far, everyone else too busy being absorbed in their own worlds. Benitez and Wilkes had long fallen asleep, leaning on each other as they occasionally moved with every turn the vehicle made.

The scene got worse when Benitez began to drool on Wilkes, a fact not lost by a laughing Abigail.

Gazing out his own window, Jackson shook his head before asking the question on all of the agents minds.

"So, uh... let me see if I get this straight. You've been working with a nine hundred year old Goth girl, Spock the Elf, and emotionless Hermione. You fought Smaug the Dragon, magic exists in their world, and humans rights flat out don't exist."

Kincaid sighed before looking at the rear view mirror and at his father. "Yeah. You hit the nail on the head, pops." Elton paused from stroking his daughter's hair as he chimed in. "Yeah, pretty much. What a time to be alive huh?"

"Well, color me envious. My deployments weren't anywhere near as." Jackson paused as he tried to find a word to best describe the whole campaign. He never got the chance to finish though, a chuckling Heidegger finishing his statement.

"Adventurous?"

"Yeah, something like that. At least the bad guys could fight back in mine though."

Kincaid shook his head. "Hey, I did my time in the sand lot. I got the "being shot at" box all check off."

 _As well as the night terror box._

Roger grumbled as he tried to push a snoring Benitez off. "Sounds more like a sci-fi movie to me. Give it some time, though. Hollywood's gonna cash in on this. Mark my words."

Aldritch had been listening in on the conversation as he tried to find something to add. However, just like Jackson's, his mind was a jumbled mess.

Even he found it hard to believe. He was simple man, his whole resume mirroring that of any other junior officer in the Corps. Strong sense of patriotism, good grades in college to follow after a marketable major. He was the only child in his family to go off into the service, a man like many others, seeking a chance to prove himself and add more to his repertoire of accomplishments.

Still, to go from graduating as Neural Scientist, to leading a Marine tank platoon off in fantasy land... That was something most officers would never be able to boast.

All things considered, it was often too much at times for him to process. His first Combat Action Ribbon would come from mowing down entire hordes of enemy foot soldiers, men who couldn't even fight back. It bothered him at times, and even with all the luck they'd had thus far, he still couldn't help but wonder how much longer it would go.

How long until one of his men would have to be sent home in a casket? How long until that phone call he would have to make to some family, telling them their son had been "Killed in action in the line of duty." Give the nature of the fighting so far, it seemed almost silly for him to even have this fear in the first place.

But it still wouldn't go away.

Then there was, of course, the Diet itself. He had been cast aside, in favor of officials trying to put his men on the spot. Trying to put the Corps on the spot. He had never gone to Afghanistan, never been part of the generation who had to live with the why of their deployment. In a way, this campaign had given him a taste of it, and yet, here were his men, having seen the worst war had to offer, and didn't seem phased at all. They took the entire Diet summons in stride, men who had to live with fingers being pointed at them before.

It made him feel alien in comparison. Even Benitez seemed carefree.

"So, what's your opinion on all of this, sir?" Aldritch's train of thought was broken as Jackson turned around to address him. The older agent raised an eyebrow at the lieutenant's deer in the headlights look. "You good sir?"

"Yeah, fine. Just, uh... thinking officer stuff, you know?"

Jackson chuckled before turning back around. "Oh all too well. May not have been an officer, but I was a platoon sergeant plenty of times. Know all about having to lead a bunch of misfits."

Aldritch nodded before looking back out his window. "I can only imagine. Got out as a Gunnery Sergeant, right?"

"Yes, sir. Got selected for Top too."

"Really? What made you turn it down?"

"Ah, a couple of things. I did everything I wanted to do, you know? Deployed, went off on MSG duty, got some college done. By the time I hit twenty years, I was an old man, just ready to move on to do other things."

Jackson paused to reach around and pat his son on the knee. "Like being there more for my kids."

Kincaid shook his head before chuckling. "Yeah, you say you're an old man, and here you are, still doing things old men shouldn't be doing."

"I'm not that old. Bet I can still kick your ass."

Laughter followed directly after Jackson's boast. Of course, Kincaid of all people knew that his father wasn't lying. As the laughter died down, Aldritch finally answered the question Jackson had asked.

"Going back to your question, though... I can honestly say I really don't know what to think. All that matters to me is getting the job done, and bringing my men back home in one piece." He sighed before continuing. "As far as standard operating procedure goes, not a whole lot has really changed so far. We still try to operate just the same as we would over on any deployment, only with a much bigger emphasis on reaching out to the people. The locals seem pretty happy with having us around, some have even gone so far as outright worshiping us."

Heidegger raised an eyebrow at the Lieutenant at his last statement. "Worshiping?"

"Oh yeah. It's... Unnerving at times, to say it lightly."

"The concept of machines, fighting the way we do... it's all alien to them." Kincaid looked over at Heidegger as he chimed in. "I mean, hell, even the Afghanis had some odd superstitions about us. They understood what war machines are, but for all intents and purposes, they thought we came from the sky. A lot of 'em don't even know what America is."

Everyone stayed silent before Aldritch continued where Kincaid left off. "Now take that, and multiply it by a billion. For all intents and purposes, we're about as alien to them as the concept of non human species is to us. Human or not, everything down to what we wear is strange and foreign.

"When we leave the wire, it's almost like being on another planet. Everything there is untouched by technology, it's just a verdant world of green and clear skies. It's a damn good thing we got the maps when we, did and comms still work over there. Other besides that, well... we'd be completely lost, all things considered. There's still a lot we don't know too. Hell, everything past what our maps show is unexplored, and nobody is really sure just how big the world is."

Jackson had been quietly listening in. He tried to think about what the officer said, to paint in his mind a scene akin to what his son was facing.

How fitting was it, though, that U.S. Marines were right at the forefront of it. Pride for his son aside, however, it still pained him that Jasper wasn't home, living a normal life. If he had been close to getting some sort of peace before, that opportunity was long gone now.

"No matter what we do, we've completely changed everything over there. Only time will tell where it's all going to lead, because I can tell you right now." Aldritch paused as he looked at Jackson. "This campaign is only going to get a lot bigger. Third MEB is en route, and something tells me they won't be the last to try and come in through that gate. Especially after everything that was just discussed at the Diet."

Jackson merely continued to gaze out his window as he responded. "Yeah, things are gonna get real interesting these next couple months."

Things went back to being quiet, the only sounds coming from the sleeping pair's snoring and the sounds of tires on asphalt.

"So, where we headin' to next?" Kincaid said as he looked at his father through the rear view mirror with a raised eyebrow.

"Some hotel in Tokyo. We scoped it out a few days earlier, it's not too shabby, and is often used by foreign diplomats. It's near some pretty interesting areas too, once we get the all clear you guys should be good to get some RnR in."

Roger chuckled. "Yeah, there's some pretty good bars nearby. Saw a pretty good stri-"

Jackson turned around and glared at the younger agent before he could finish, causing him to cough in response. "Yeah, lots of interesting places. You guys oughta enjoy it."

Kincaid rolled his eyes with a smile. "Sounds good to me, lord knows I could use a drink or two." He looked at Wilkes and Benitez. "I know these two are gonna go hog wild when they hear about it."

"All within reason, Corporal Kincaid." Aldritch muttered from the back of the vehicle.

"Of course sir."

"We'll be on our best behavior." Elton chimed in with a smile, prompting a playful nudge from his wife. Before the exchange could continue, one of the dash mounted radios blared to life.

"Room One, this is Hotel Five."

Jackson sighed as he picked up one of the handsets. "Send it for One."

"Be advised, are you aware the bus broke down?"

"What?"

Jackson promptly looked at his side view mirror. Sure enough, the other two SUV's were parking at the side of the street, the towering silhouette of the bus behind them having long stopped moving. In moments the SUV lurched to a stop before promptly going into reverse to join up with the others, an estranged Jackson talking into his handset all the while.

"Yeah, we're tracking now."

"Solid, let us know as the situation develops. Public Safety is on site, coordinate with them. Hotel Five Out."

The rest of the SUV's occupants groaned, including a now freshly woken Wilkes and Benitez. The former yawned and looked around as he rubbed his eyes. "Yo, what's going on? We stopping at Burger King?"

"No, we're not stopping at Burger King. You see a Burger King around here?" Kincaid's face twisted into one of disbelief as he pointed out the windows. "The bus broke down."

Benitez groaned again as he shifted uncomfortably between Wilkes and Roger. "Man, what gives? This is starting to play out like one of those bad Liam Neeson movies."

All the agents promptly glared at the tired Hispanic. Of all the jokes to be saying right now, that was the least tactful. Especially with all the commotion prior to and during the Diet with the extremist groups. Seeing the error in his ways, Benitez merely shrunk back into his seat.

"My bad."

With everything settled, Jackson sighed before opening his door. "Alright, Roger you're with me. Heidegger just uh." He looked back and saw how far back into the vehicle the other agent was before shaking his head. "Stay comfortable I guess."

With that, both agents promptly left the still running vehicle and made their way over to the bus, leaving the rest of the occupants to merely sit in silence as they tried to ponder what would happen next.

"So, we're not getting Burger King or?"

"Dog?"

"Wussup?"

"Just, shush."

"Heh.

* * *

 **TOKYO METRO MARUNOCHI LINE**

" _Prease, mindu da gappu between the trainu, and the pratformu._ "

Kincaid sighed in defeat as he walked into the subway, Wilkes and Benitez laughing furiously at the speakers' horrid English skills.

By some stroke of misfortune, the bus's transmission decided to figuratively "crap the bed". Coupled with the fact that the group was now effectively stranded in the middle of busy urban Japan, FUBAR was the least of the colorful terms many had on their minds.

At first only one solution had been suggested, and it involved multiple trips using the SUVs to get everyone from their current location to the hotel. That idea had been quickly shot, though. Nobody wanted to roll the dice and sit around stranded. It also didn't help that the early feeling of paranoia still lingered on both DS and Public Safety's minds. In fact, some of them were beginning to think the bus had actually been sabotaged.

No doubt the MSD team was expecting that very same thing.

Either way, the group needed to keep moving, and standing around with their thumbs up their asses wasn't helping. Another solution would present itself in the form of Itami however, the man being well versed in the layout of the area. By some stroke of luck there happened to be a metro station nearby, and it just so happened that the lieutenant knew exactly which train they had to catch.

So, a last minute decision was made. Rather than split up, it was decided that the Marines would accompany the Japanese troops and Special Region guests on the train.

Whether that happened out of camaraderie, wanting adventure, or simple boredom, was a mystery.

After clearing it up with the higher ups, Jackson, Heidegger, Roger and Komakado were told to tag along, while the SUVs would be loaded up with the baggage and drive to the hotel. A surveillance team would have eyes on security cams, too.

With the new plan in motion, and the necessary calls sent up, the motley crew of odd individuals made their way to the underground metro station, eyes following them every step. The obviously foreign look aside, the strange attires the Marines and Special Region girls were wearing did not help in the slightest.

Of course, the totally not obvious government agents being the nail in the coffin.

Everything had gone smooth up until it was time to actually board the busy train. The Special Region guests were nothing short of nervous at the prospect of travelling underground, Rory in particular. It also didn't help that no sooner had the last of the group made its way on board, a distraught looking Komakado promptly had the suicide doors closed in his face. Evidently he and his lackeys had lagged behind, trying to make their way through the large throng of people.

It also didn't help that Japanese public transportation was notoriously fast, built to fit its busy peoples' way of life.

Now here they were, a mismatched group of individuals trying to comprehend what the rest of the evening would bring, and making fun at the automated announcer's bad English. They wouldn't have to wait long however.

"So, what's why's everyone look so..." Elton paused from tending to his wife and daughter as he looked at the nervous faces on a few of the Special Region guests. Rory and Bozes had both been clinging to Itami and Tomita, respectively. Even Piña stood hovering dangerously close next to a confused looking Aldritch.

"Tense?"

Rory dug herself deeper into Itami's trench coat when she responded to Elton's question. "If we're underground, Hardy can find me here. This is his domain." All of the non Special Regioners looked at her with raised eyebrows at her as Lelei went to expand upon what the Apostle meant.

"In our world, the god Hardy rules the underworld."

"Yes, and for over two hundred years she's been trying to propose to me." Rory tightened her grip on Itami's arm. "She hates men however, so if I stay near you perhaps she'll get the hint."

Wilkes and some of the other Marines raised an eyebrow at Rory's last statement. "Whoah, hold the phone. There's a woman after you?"

"Yes."

Wilkes chuckled before rolling his eyes. "Shit, I got a solution for that. Sounds like she ain't never had a good di-OOMPH." Before Wilkes could finish the vulgar statement, Shino had promptly cut him off with one of her gut punches. While Wilkes glared at the now laughing sergeant, everyone else merely rolled their eyes.

To the agents, the exchange was nothing short of confusing. The language barrier again made itself apparent. Whatever it was, it didn't concern them in the long run. Their job was to ensure everyone got where they needed to get to.

"So, you going to keep ignoring me?" Kincaid's blood practically froze as Mari mumbled from his side. Sure enough, as he looked over he was greeted with a glare from the medic. He tried his best not to sigh as he thought of an excuse. Truth be told, he hadn't been ignoring her.

But he certainly hadn't been eager to make conversation either.

"Eh, just tired that's all. It's way past my bed time."

Mari raised an eyebrow before rolling her eyes. "Jasper, I was born on a day, but it wasn't yesterday. I know quite well that it's not even close to your "bedtime"."

"Okay, you caught me, it isn't near my bedtime. But I am tired, must be from the gate lag."

"Gate lag?" Mari didn't notice it, but a small smirk had begun to form on her mouth. She knew damn well she thought it was funny and Kincaid was quick to capitalize on this.

He was still a clown after all.

"Hell yeah gate lag. You know how the uh, multidimensional time differences are. Really took a lot out of me, you know?"

"Oh, I know all too well." Mari gave him a playful nudge. "Well then, try to wake up. I know of some good places nearby, and I know you Marines love to drink." She paused to watch Shino pester an annoyed Wilkes and Benitez before shaking her head. "And I'm sure they'll be excited at the prospect of that as well."

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Believe me, you don't want to see Wilkes drunk."

"Well I don't think we'll be drinking that much."

"Oh we won't try to. We won't, he will."

"Is he that bad?"

"All depends on the atmosphere and what he's drinking. We'll keep him under control, still though, you're in for a treat."

 _Or a goddamn nightmare. God, we're gonna get fucking trashed._

Before the conversation could continue, all of the train's occupants began to rock forward as a voice came over the train's speakers in Japanese. Evidently, Mari hadn't been holding on tight enough, and came slamming into an annoyed Kincaid.

Thankfully, the Marine had been holding onto a pole with a cast iron grip. Naturally this caused her to simply stick to him as the train finally came to a halt. He looked down at the embarrassed medic for a moment before rolling his eyes. "Jesus, I knew Old Spice was strong, but not that strong. Guess the commercials weren't lying."

Mari grumbled as her face turned red, promptly pushing him away before making her way back to her spot. "Baka"

"Come again?"

"Nothing."

"Yeah, and I have gate lag."

Kincaid glanced over at his father and raised an eyebrow, his eyes met with an impish grin. Much like Jackson, the others had the same expression as well. Evidently, this was all one hell of a fun joke, considering it was at Kincaid's expense.

Before the inevitable backlash could proceed, the train's doors opened, and in walked an Komakado, his hair ever so slightly messier than before.

If ever there had been a Kodak moment, this was it. Just about everyone's jaws almost dropped at the sight of the Public Safety agent.

"Jesus, my mans, what are you? Some kinda Houdini?" Wilkes raised an eyebrow at Komakado, who merely stepped beside a pole and grasped it in one hand. The agent merely shook his head in response.

"You could say that, yes. One has to know the layout of his surroundings in these..." He paused for a second. "Troubled times."

He paused to look at Jackson and the other agents. "Remind me to thank your superiors for giving me a lift."

Roger merely nodded with a grin. "Hey, same team right?"

"But of course. Now then, onto the matter at hand." Komakado looked at Jackson before continuing, a slight look of irritation on his face. "If we stay on this train we should get to our destination in no time."

The American agent merely nodded before sighing. "If things stay under control, and without any more convenient mishaps."

Of course, nothing could stay under control so long as Rory remained distressed, and she was intent on letting Itami know as her grip tightened. "I can't stay here any longer! I want to get out!"

For as long as anyone had known Rory, she had been nothing but smiles and a cocksure attitude. In a way, she was like most of the Marines. So when Itami saw her distressed like that, he couldn't help but genuinely feel concerned.

"Itami~! Please, I can't take it any more!

Plus, the other passengers were staring.

"You uh, gonna be okay?"

"No! I want to go~!"

He sighed as he looked down at her, then at the door. "Fine, fine."

No sooner had the name Ginza came over the intercom, Itami glanced over at Aldritch and nodded. Judging by Piña's hand softly gripping his sleeve, the Lieutenant nodded back, and as soon as the doors opened, the two officers led the group out of the train.

Naturally, this had been met with a great deal of confusion, mainly from the agents. Itami wouldn't budge however, stating that Rory's condition prevented her from being underground for long periods of time.

Of course, everyone but the agents knew it was a farce. They, on the other hand, saw it as a potential complication, and between grudges and gritting teeth, let it slide.

So, with great annoyance, everyone promptly walked up the station's stairs, emerging back into the cold Tokyo night air.

The group paused to admire the flashing lights and towering buildings for a few moments. If the Special Region guests had felt like they were in a different dimension before, the new sights in front of them might as well have been the heavens themselves.

"It's something else, isn't it?" Aldritch chuckled as he looked at a dumbstruck Piña, the princess's eyes darting every which way as she tried to comprehend what she was seeing. "Are there other cities like this in the world?"

Aldritch paused for a moment as he remembered some of the cities back home. For just a moment the creeping feeling of homesickness crossed his mind, but merely pushed it to the side as he joined the princess in looking at some of the buildings.

"Sure are. There are some even bigger than this one back where we come from. We Marines, that is."

Piña looked at the lieutenant, her jaw nearly dropping at the prospect of it all. Tokyo had thus far been the most mind boggling thing she had ever seen in her entire life. Now she was being told that the Marines had claim to cities even bigger than this.

"Even bigger than this?"

"Oh sure, New York, Washington DC to name a few. I've been to New York before, there's towers there that practically block the sky."

"You forgot Philly sir." Wilkes laughed as he interjected with Elton and his family in tow. "And Pittsburgh sir."

Aldritch merely rolled his eyes as Piña tried to comprehend everything that had just been told to her. "Oh of course, I didn't forget about those two." The lieutenant looked over at Benitez for a moment. "Benitez, you're from New York aren't you?"

The burly Hispanic stopped reminiscing about home for a moment as he nodded. "Yes sir, I know for a fact it's even busier this time of year, too." He paused for a moment as he went back to looking at some of the buildings. "God, I miss home."

Kincaid had been off to the side trying to pry himself from Mari's attentions when he saw an opportunity to insert himself into the conversation.

"Hey man, we all do. Shit you forget DC and Baltimore aren't too far from me. God I bet the clubs are packed right now." All of the Marines paused as they thought about home for a few minutes. Itami and the others were home right now, knew these sights and probably travelled through them plenty of times.

The Marines were just as foreign as the Special Region guests, even if they did live in the same world. All things considered, this trip back was almost a sombre reminder of just how far away they were from everything they loved.

All the fantasy, all the adventure, all the things they had seen, nothing could replace the fact that they were still at war, still stuck inside tanks. Kincaid himself couldn't help but feel his spirits drop as he thought about his situation.

He could've been out now, could've been home enjoying the holidays right now.

"Well, this is all well and good, but I do think we should continue on our way. There'll be plenty of time to admire the scenery later." Komakado looked back at the group and tapped his watch for emphasis. "Being out here in the open like this... I cannot say I'm too thrilled for it."

Jackson and the other agents nodded before muttering into their ear pieces. "Agreed, we need to keep moving."

With that, the group carried on its way through the curious crowds as they tried to remain as vigilant as possible.

"To be back on the surface and among sights such as these! It is a shame we weren't able to continue with our previous trip, this is truly a refreshing change of pace, even if the air smells ugly!" Rory got a good stretch in as her familiar smile returned.

It promptly subsided, as a man dressed in a black hoodie came running in at full speed and snatched her halberd from her hands.

Even before she could shout, the DS agents were already on the move.

"DIGGER! RUNNER, NOW!"

"ON IT!"

In seconds the middle aged DS agent had reached under his jacket and pulled out a collapsible nightstick. Before the perpetrator could even begin to lose his balance from the obviously heavy weapon, he was promptly set upon by a quick and efficient beatdown.

His knees were knocked out from under him as his arms twisted behind his back, the heavily bundled weapon hitting the ground with a dull thud.

As this was all happening, two of the black SUVs from before promptly came to a screeching halt next to the sidewalk the group was on. Before anyone could even comprehend what was going on, Heidegger had already handcuffed the man and dragged him over towards one of the waiting vehicles. By the time the door had opened and closed, the man was gone and the two vehicles with him.

All in the span of a few seconds.

Things were quiet as everyone stood there slack jawed, an irritated Komakado trying to calm pedestrians down before looking at the agents.

"Public safety affairs! Everything is alright! The situation is under control!" Once the situation began to die down, Komakado approached the agents with a scowl as he muttered

"What was that?! Good god, did you have to make such a scene?!"

Heidegger merely shrugged as he collapsed his nightstick and returned it to its proper place under his jacket. "Just doing our job. You could've helped out, you know. I didn't see you doing anything."

"I didn't need to! The man was already loosing his footing!"

Jackson stood in between the two agents and shook his head. "Gentlemen, can we relax here?" He looked at Komakado and sighed before muttering into his ear piece. "Yeah the situation is under control, yeah we're on the move."

Komakado grumbled as he made his way over towards the halberd. "You Americans, always making a mess of things and making life harder for everyone else." Roger had raised an eyebrow and reached out just as the Public Safety Agent had bent over to pick up the weapon. "Uh, I wouldn-"

The sound of cracking.

"AAAAARRGHH!"

Jackson promptly touched his earpiece once more. "Yeah we're going to need an ambulance over here too."

Wilkes slowly looked at Kincaid before shaking his head. "See? Told you your dad was a fucking assassin." All the other Marines promptly nodded in agreement as Elton placed a hand on his gunner's shoulder. "Yeah, my man, your dad is a fucking hitman."

Kincaid shook his head and sighed. "Man, I don't even fucking know anymore."

The ambulance came moments later, the paramedics jumping out and strapping a pained Komakado on a wheeled stretcher. He muttered something to Itami as they loaded him into the ambulance, his voice cracking in between whimpers.

Rory merely stared as she toyed with the halberd. "What a wimp, it's not that heavy."

Itami turned back to the group, then brought his arm up to look at his watch. "Hey, uh, do you guys mind if we take a little detour?"

* * *

 **2000 HOURS UNKNOWN LOCATION**

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"No, but what choice do we have? It's crazy enough to work and the good lieutenant hasn't steered us wrong so far."

"Okay, but if this doesn't pan out, I say we just grab everyone and throw 'em back into the gate. Call me paranoid, but something is definitely going on."

The three agents stood in front of a small condo and eyed it for a few moments before Jackson muttered over their comms. "Solid Hotel Five, we're outside the place. We'll keep you posted as the situation develops."

Not long after Komakado's injury, and the subsequent commotion the ambulance brought, the group was at a loss as to what to do next. Itami's proposal had been an annoyance at first, but now it had grown into a 'plan C'.

Somehow, the hotel the group was meant to stay at caught fire, another convenient incident. The powers that be were utterly confused, whoever was orchestrating all of this was somehow getting leaked intel, and was ghosting their every move.

This left them with only one choice, the group had to go dark until the situation resolved itself.

The only problem was, nobody was sure where they could go while "off the grid." It was only after they arrived at the place that Itami's idea began to make sense.

This time, however, the officer was tight lipped as to where exactly the location was, as well as who was even in ownership of it. Without any better ideas and the hour getting later, the group once again merely shrugged and went along with the plan.

After a series of twists and turns including a much needed convenient stop at a Burger King, the group finally arrived at the location per Itami's guidance. More than few raised their eyebrows, and looked at Itami like a madman.

A couple others couldn't help but understand the genius behind it. It certainly wasn't a remarkable condo by any means, and the street it occupied wasn't much better. All things considered, it was the perfect spot to lay low until everything blew over. One question still remained however.

Who exactly did it belong to?

Jackson sighed before looking back at the others, Roger and Heidegger scoping the location out with vigilant eyes all the while. "Alright, we're gonna head up with Itami and make sure everything's clear." The agent's hand hovered by his sidearm before he glared at Itami. "And believe me, it better be all clear."

The officer merely gulped before putting on a nervous smile. "Relax, this person and I go way back."

"If you say so. Alright, lead on hero."

With that, the agents followed closely behind the lieutenant as they made their way up a small flight of stairs. Meanwhile, the rest of the group stood in the cold as they watched the four men approach the condo's door. Things were quiet for a while, the only sounds coming from a few knocks at the door, and Wilkes still happily stuffing his face with the food from earlier.

"Wilkes."

The sound of another wrapper being opened.

"Wilkes?"

The sound of food being scarfed.

"Wilkes!"

"MMPH, what nigguh?"

Kincaid looked over at Wilkes, glaring at his piglike antics. "How many fucking burgers did you get?" The others listened intently as Wilkes went to respond. They were just as curious.

"Hmm, bruh I lost track after like." The loader looked inside the brown paper bag for a few seconds before shrugging. "Dunno, lost count after like four."

The other Marines rolled their eyes as Elton gave Wilkes a loud smack on the back. "Bro, you're a fucking fat a-"

"SENPAI!"

Everyone's heads promptly snapped up at the high pitched scream, a few others almost jumping back. For a few moments, nobody was sure what to do as excited chatter went back and forth from up above. After a sigh from one of the agents and a groan that clearly belonged to Itami, Jackson called down.

"Alright, it's clear. Get up here before we change our minds."

With that, everyone slowly filed up the stairs and through the walkway leading to the condo's door. As they reached the agents, the same desperate voice promptly rang out again, and they all poked their heads through the door frame.

Inside, a disheveled looking woman sat like an ape on the floor, arguing in Japanese with a gentle looking Itami as she dug a hand into a Burger King bag. The room was completely dark, and a dubious smell began to flow outside. Itami merely looked up and beckoned at the group.

As everyone including the agents looked around unsure of what to do, Aldritch simply stared and voiced his thoughs. "Uh, Lieutenant Itami... What is this?"

Itami sighed as he pointed at the woman. "Oh, sorry. Everyone, this is my ex wife, Risa."

Those who had gotten to know Itami had discovered a few things. Otaku, hero, lazy, special forces certified, and evidently well versed on the habits of fantasy creatures. They hadn't expected him, however, to have ever been married. More than a few couldn't help but simply stand there, speechless.

Once a confused looking Lelei explained the situation to her compatriots, they too joined in on the bewilderment.

The Marines, on the other hand, weren't so surprised. In fact, divorce aside, one good look at the train wreck of a woman in front of them explained it all. At some point Itami had fallen into the same trap that any other troop did, the same trap the Marines had seen many of their comrades fall into.

Marriage for the sake of benefits.

In this situation, Risa probably figured out that Itami was making decent pay as an officer. In turn, Itami probably saw an opportunity to have someone tend to his needs. Both of these factors had probably made for a real train wreck of a military marriage that was never meant to last longer than a few years at best.

At least, that was how the Marines had always seen it happen.

In the end, they merely rolled their eyes, an obviously disgusted Aldritch mumbling to his men. "See? This is the shit I constantly warn you heathens about. Keep thinking with your dick, and you'll wind up with a bucket of yuck."

Kincaid nodded in agreement. "Oh I hear you sir. Now Wilkes on the other hand..."

"No dog, she looks like the fucking creature from the black lagoon. Like, she looks like a mop that grew legs, she probably don't even shower for real." Wilkes shook his head before reaching into his bag and scarfing some stale fries down in some attempt to wash the image from his mind. He stopped for a moment and gave a sniff before grimacing. "Yeah, she definitely doesn't fucking shower."

Benitez merely nodded, too busy being absorbed in his phone to care. Seeing the look of disgust on his fellows' faces, Elton merely shook his head before running a hand through Abigail's messy hair and holding his wife. "Whatever, I did fine." He paused before looking at his spouse. "But peep, Sam, if you ever turn into something like that, I'm kicking your ass out. All love."

The Corporal promptly grunted as she elbowed him in the gut, Abigail merely giggling before tugging on both of her parent's hands.

"Okay, well, as fun as this reunion is, are we uh, gonna head inside? I mean she did invite us in." Roger looked around at everyone with a disgruntled face. Risa and Itami muttered to each other for a second, then he nodded.

"Yes, do come in. We can stay here for tonight."

She looked at Itami as she fixed her glasses and mumbled. The man simply frowned and relayed her words. "She uh... she said there's no heating. It was cut out last week."

"Ugh..."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Jesus christ, I feel like I'm in Yoda's den." Kincaid mumbled as his eyes scanned around the small dimly lit condo interior. Everywhere he and the others looked there were signs of upkeep being a second priority. Dishes were still piled inside the small kitchen's sink, Ramen cups were strewn about where they could fit and a general miasma of filth lingered in the air.

Then there were of course, the piles of doujinshis, mangas, anime disc cases and various pieces of memorabilia crammed in various small book shelves. Had this been anywhere else, Kincaid and Benitez might have been a bit more impressed, maybe even envious.

If they could also read Japanese, that is. Or if the smell wasn't as bad.

"What the hell?" Wilkes had been eyeing some strange looking school girl dolls on a shelf at the far end of a small living room. He set his bag down for a moment as he picked one up, eyeing it with curious eyes.

" _ONII~CHAN! YAMEROO~!_ "

"JESUS CHRIST, YO!"

Wilkes almost tossed the doll across the room as a scream promptly emanated from it, or rather from a speaker built somewhere under its fabrics. Things had been so quiet that everyone else couldn't help but jump at the sudden outburst, Abigail even giving a small shriek herself.

Once a desperate Risa confirmed that the item in question was still intact, and everyone else reassured there hadn't been a sudden outburst of violence, things went back to normal.

Or something close to it.

A snickering Shino promptly stood by Wilkes's side, poking and prodding him to capitalize on his embarrassment. "Heh, what a pussy you are! Scared by a doll? So much for the big bad Marines. Guess I wa-"

" _YAMERO ONIICHAN~! SUTOPPU! YAMERO! ONIICHAN YAMERO!_ "

A series of thumps rang out as the doll began screaming its war cry repeatedly. Evidently, Wilkes had quite enough of Shino's jaw jammering, and had proceeded to start smacking her in the head with the doll. The Sergeant merely giggled as she began trying to wrestle it from his hands.

Anyone with keen eyes would have noticed her fingers were touching his for a lot longer than mere playful gestures required.

Eventually Aldritch and Itami cleared their throats loud enough for the pair to notice, the two troops promptly putting an end to their game and standing there trying to play innocent.

With the distractions out of the way, and everyone back to being calm, Itami laid out the situation to his giddy ex wife.

Introductions were short and the situation explained with minimal fuss. The group needed a place to lay low for the night, and would be gone in the morning as soon as feasibly possible. In return, he'd loan her some much needed money, and even allow her to join them when they went out the following day.

Nobody cared about the former, but anyone with half a brain didn't want to be anywhere near the deranged woman.

Still, with a case of some off brand Japanese beer in the fridge, and a roof over their heads, the Marines were content all the same. All of them except for Elton, he still had a wife and child to tend to.

Fortunately, the agents had just the idea in mind. The hotel they were staying at might as well have been Fort Knox with all the other agents that were staying there. Seeing as how Risa's place was already crowded as it was, they could easily get a room for Elton and his family, with the assurance that they'd be safe so long as they stayed there.

It would also grant them so much needed alone time.

As far as making sure everyone else was safe, an SUV would come by every hour or so and post up for a few minutes. It was slapdash and hardly conformed to the original plan, but it would have to suffice. Everyone else would just have to make due with being crammed inside what little space Risa's place provided.

As far as Japanese Public Safety was concerned, they vanished after Komakado's accident. All the group knew was that the afro'd agent had broken his back, and wouldn't be walking for a while. As for the rest of his goons, who knew.

 **XXXXXXX**

"So..."

"Yeah..."

Kincaid stood on the catwalk with his father, the pair having long lit up cigarettes and getting in what little time they could together before Jackson had to leave.

"Sorry we couldn't get much time in today. Well, sorry we probably won't get much time together at all during your trip." Jackson took a drag and sighed before pointing to his jacket. "But, you know, duty calls. Wouldn't be the first time we had to make do with what we got, huh?"

Kincaid sighed in defeat before letting out a cloud of smoke. "Yeah, I know. Just how it is for us, another day in the life of the Kincaids."

"Yeah, but just because we've gotten used to it doesn't mean it's alright." Jackson reached across and pat his son on the shoulder, expelling a cloud of smoke as he did so. "Not a day goes by where it doesn't pain me to be away from my children."

"I know, don't think I'm not just as bothered by it." Kincaid took another drag. "I just wish... I dunno dad. I wish things could be different sometimes, you know? You and mom, us."

"I know son, I know. But we've grown stronger from it, hell you know your mother and I still talk. What's done is done though, she made up her mind."

"Yeah, obviously. Considering she's already found someone."

It was true, though his parents had long maintained communication out of respect his mother was far from single. Though a second marriage hadn't worked the way she had wanted it to she had pushed on through that divorce and kept her head high and she was rewarded for it. A former British paratrooper and well traveled businessman. He had been good to both Alice and her kids. Kincaid had had a drink with the man a number of times and through their exchange of stories in the service a close bond began to form.

Kincaid's mother was well off in this regard, his father on the other hand. Bad relationship after bad relationship, his last one almost tearing his very house apart with her drama and three problem children. It wasn't until Kincaid's deployment where he had finally kicked her out and thankfully before Alice's visit. Still, the man was single and even with his suave tendencies he had still yet to settle down with anyone.

Something that bothered his son to no end.

Kincaid let out another puff of smoke before turning to face his father. "And it's time for you to do the same dad. You're a good man. Fuck, you've done so much for Janice and I. I mean you're not perfect, nobody is, but you shouldn't have to be alone for it."

He looked out at the Tokyo lights beyond for a moment. "I just want nothing but the best for you, that's all. I mean look at me." Kincaid took a step back and outstretched his arms. "You inspired me to be who I am today. You were my hero when I was younger." He looked his father dead in the eyes. "And you still are, but god damnit, dad."

Kincaid reached down and grabbed an open can of beer, taking a swig from it before topping it off with another drag. His face puckered for a moment as he tried to handle the sour taste. "All of this shit is just... Fuck, it's a lot, you know? My mind's racing all over the place, one minute I'm about to get out, the next I'm off fighting in fantasy land."

He took another swig before sighing. "Now I'm here in Japan, on fake libo with my dad who's on the clock before I go right the fuck back into that gate. It's not fucking fair."

Jackson put his cigarette out on the catwalk railing before giving his son a hug. The pair stood there embracing each other tightly as Jackson mumbled. "I know son, I know. But this is how it is, welcome to the Corps."

"Yeah, I've already had my fill of welcomes."

"As for finding someone for myself? I have everything I need right now son, don't you worry about me. As long as my children are happy, I'm happy."

The pair let go of each other and stood there for a few moments before the SUV honked, Jackson responding by giving the driver a stern look. "Look son, I gotta go, alright? Keep your phone on, and let me know if anything happens. We'll uh... try to continue this later okay?"

"Yeah, you go do you, dad."

As Jackson made his way down the stairs, and towards the SUV, he stopped before looking back up at his son. "And give your mom a call, or a text. She's been blowing up my work phone all day today, and I'm sure the rest of the family might want to hear from you too."

Kincaid shook his head and chuckled. "Yeah, alright dad."

Jackson opened his door, and had just began to clamber in before he stopped once more. "Oh, and son?"

"Yeah dad?"

"I love you."

"I love you too dad. Stay safe out there, alright?"

"You too."

And with that Jackson closed his door, the SUV promptly shifting into reverse and orienting itself before driving off down the street. Kincaid stood there for a few moments, chugging the rest of his beer before crushing the can under his boot and sighing. The cold night's air was refreshing and truth be told he was enjoying the moment of peace and quiet.

So, he lit another cigarette and reached into his pocket to turn his phone on. As smoke poured across the white glare and took shape against various colors flashing, Kincaid's jaw dropped as he was greeted by a long wall of text notifications.

 _Liz: Hey it's me, you alright?_

 _Liz: Hey, look I know we haven't talked in a while but I saw you on TV. Made me think about you, I hope you're safe over there._

 _Liz: Hey can we talk?_

 _Mendez: Hey brother man hope you're safe out there. Saw you on TV, Raymond would be fucking proud of all of you guys. Anyways, keep on on keeping on. Semper Fi.  
_

 _Dumbass: HEY! OMG I SAW U ON TV! LIKE WOW! HEY CALL ME SOMETIME ALRIGHT? :)_

"Oooh, playa playa!"

Kincaid promptly turned around and was greeted by the sight of a grinning Wilkes, the loader holding two unopened cans of beer. "What's good nigga? You been out here for a minute now." As Kincaid took one of the cans, Wilkes put two fingers to his mouth. "Hey you got one of em thang thangs?"

"You mean a cigarette?"

"Yessir."

Kincaid put his phone away as he rolled his eyes as he reached into his bomber jacket's breast pocket, producing a half crushed pack. Wilkes quickly snatched it before lighting one and passing the pack back. "Ah yes, arigatou muh nigguhru!"

Kincaid merely put his hands together and bowed before chuckling. "Ahh yes, you are quite wercome my honorabre sir." As he stood back up straight, he promptly popped the tab on his beer before taking a swig. "Hey, you got some shit to play?"

"Oh you know it." Wilkes reached into one of his windbreaker's many pockets and took out his Iphone, setting it down on the catwalk railing before picking a song.

* * *

 **Wilkes's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 24: Kanye West "Flashing Lights"**

 _ **PLAY?**_

* * *

 _Flashing lights, lights_

"God, this takes me back." Kincaid began to bob his head to the beat of the music as he took another drag. "Man, this was our fucking jam whenever we went out."

 _Flashing lights, lights_

"Right? I keep adding more music, sometimes I forget about the fuckin' classics." Wilkes nodded as he took a swig from his can, topping it off with a drag. "You good man? You been a little quiet today."

 _Flashing lights, lights_

Kincaid continued to look at the Tokyo lights beyond before sighing. "Yeah, just, you know? Lots of shit on my mind."

"Shit bruh, you always got shit on your mind." Wilkes let out a cloud of smoke. "I mean then again, I do too. We're thinkers you know? Big thinkin."

"Big thinkin?"

"Hell yeah, but peep."

Wilkes chugged the rest of his beer before throwing the can as far as he could off the catwalk. In moments a loud clang rang out with the sound of a cat hissing following it. The loader merely laughed before pointing out at the source of the noise. "My bad! Anyways."

He turned to face Kincaid as he leaned against the railing, pausing to fix his bucket hat. "Man, don't let this shit get to you. I don't let it get to me, wanna know why?"

Kincaid chuckled as he let his cigarette hang from his mouth. "Oh, enlighten me."

"I just don't fucking care. I don't care about the gate, I don't care about the bad guys, I don't care about any of that shit. Don't get me wrong, my mans, like, It feels good to be doing some good for once, but my focus is on _**us**_. All I care about is making sure we all get home safe, ya mean?"

Wilkes paused before putting on his trademark grin. "I mean, I'd love to fuck an elf, ya dig? Or maybe one of them catgirls. Maybe they got one of them dark elves, you know? For my black ass, show her the dark side, ya mean?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes before letting out a cloud of smoke. "Oh, I'm following you, bro. What about fucking the genki girl, though?"

"Who?"

"Fucking Shino. You two are always starting shit."

Wilkes rolled his eyes before cracking his knuckles. "Yeah, I'll tame her ass first."

"Not before she tames you. I'm telling you, bro, she's gonna fuck you up." Kincaid chuckled before finishing his beer and crushing the can. "God, you're a fucking heathen, you know that? Here I am, trying to live the life of a good soldier of god and just cruise along."

"Oh word, whatever you say."

Some chuckles before a few moments of silence.

"I'm glad you're here, bro, like." Kincaid put his cigarette out before getting a stretch in, joints cracked and popped as he groaned in exhaustion. "That's what I've always fucking envied about you. You're just you, you know? No matter what, you're never afraid to just be who you are. You can take the worst of shit and make it a good time."

"Damn right, but peep, my mans. You're good peoples too. Hell, you're gonna go places after all this is done. Me?" Wilkes sighed as he leaned out over the railing. "I'm just all kinds of fucked, ya mean? I just really don't care what happens in the long run. Long as I'm livin and doin what I enjoy doin, Then it's all straight in my world."

He hunched over to pick up one of Kincaid's flattened cans. "And this shit?" Wilkes threw the flattened can as far as he could. "This shit ain't it. I'm long done with this bullshit. I stopped giving a fuck after Afghanistan."

"I think we all did."

It broke us down, took something we cared dearly for away from us.

"Well magic land has to count for something, right?"

"Yeah, I guess."

Before the conversation could continue, Risa's door opened with a curious Mari sticking her head out. She eyed the two Marines for a few moments before smiling. "You two almost done with your romantic moment? Shino wants to get a couple games of cards in before we all pass out."

Wilkes and Kincaid exchanged annoyed looks before Kincaid shrugged. "Yeah, give us like two minutes."

"Oh but of course."

As the door closed, Wilkes looked at Kincaid before pointing at the door. "You gotta take care of that, my mans."

"What do you mean?"

"Man." Wilkes huffed before folding his arms. "You gonna smash, or not?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Bro I thought we went over this. It's not gonna come to that."

"Man, you want me to be honest?"

"Like you won't be anyways."

"Listen, I don't care what your plan for snake girl is. You know I ride witchu, no matter what, but you gotta handle your hoes, my man. Mari wants you, plain and simple. I don't get why you don't just smash and move on."

"Gee, I dunno, because she won't leave me alone if I do?" Kincaid leaned back against the railing and shook his head. "Nothing good will come of that, the last thing we need is bullshit during a deployment."

"So?"

"So?"

"My mans, listen. She'll probably be posted off somewhere else when we get back anyways. You won't have to see her."

Kincaid groaned as he buried his face in his hands. "God, why are we even talking about this? What the fuck happened to shit being normal? A normal fucking deployment?"

"Shit stopped being normal the moment that gate opened up, my mans. The sooner you come to terms with this probably not even being a real deployment, the better." Wilkes chuckled. "Maybe some ass will do you some good, set your mind straight. Plus, you'll have snake girl back at Italic-"

Kincaid put a hand up and shook his head. "Man, enough. Don't bring Aurea up, I don't even know what her angle is. One thing at a fucking time."

"Word."

"Yeah."

The pair stood there for a few moments before Kincaid sighed. "Well, let's go back in."

"Yessir."

Before Kincaid could make his way to the door, Wilkes stopped him as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, and bruh."

"What?"

"If you don't smash before we go back through the gate? You're a fucking pussy."

Kincaid looked back at his longtime friend before rolling his eyes. "Yeah, whatever."

"Whatever nothing, bro. I'm being dead ass right now."

"Uh huh." Kincaid chuckled before shaking his head. "You're a fucking heathen, bro."

"Damn right, all love homie."

"Yeah, all love bro."

With that, the two made their way inside before closing the door behind them.

* * *

 **2000 HOURS CAMP ALNUS**

Van Hauser sighed as he left his room, closing the door behind him. He walked down the hallway and out the caseban, taking a fresh breath of the night's cool air and trying his best to keep his spirits.

Everything that happened that day, from Burglen to the ass chewing, left the lieutenant in a bad mood. Now, after a good shower, word passed to his men, and leaving Boyd to his own devices, he was free to do as he liked.

Of course, that meant visiting a certain cat.

The lieutenant sighed as he rounded a corner at an intersection, then kept on walking. Wearing his heavy IMTV all day had left his back and shoulders sore, the bones and muscles complaining every step. Still, the lighter feeling of just his FROG suit and assault pack were a welcome reprieve, if not a reminder of how exhausted he was.

After a series of turns and one final stretch, Van Hauser arrived at the refugee area. He paused to wave at the obviously exhausted guards, the pair merely nodding before going back to trying to stay awake.

He passed through the small entrance, then worked his way down the paths and alleys that led to a certain prefab building.

The refugee area was silent, and not exactly well lit. It appeared most refugees had gone to bed, and he silently hope it wasn't her case. After all, this was the perfect moment for some alone time.

As he turned one final corner, he couldn't help but stand still, and stare.

A human-like shape sat on a second floor window, her head pointed at the moon and strange looking ears rising up from her hair. Her legs dangled off outside, occasionally swinging back and forth without any care in the world.

Felicia was waiting for him.

William took a deep breath before popping in a piece of gum, and trying to look as upbeat as possible. This was supposed to be a cheerful occasion, even if the entire day had been a crap shoot. With her present well hidden in his FROG trouser's cargo pocket, he soldiered on.

The lieutenant only made it halfway towards her when her ears perked up, and a familiar scent hit her nose. She sniffed at the air for a second, then looked downwards with confused eyes. She blinked, then brought her hands to her mouth as he walked closer.

"Hey there, Fel- Wait, what are you- Nonononono!"

She jumped off.

With an accuracy only comparable to a cat's, Felicia leaped off the window, angling the fall straight into his arms. He could only brace himself as she crashed on him, catching her with arms open and struggling to keep his footing.

She was surprisingly light.

She dug herself deep into his chest, both arms and legs wrapped around him as she nuzzled her head on his neck, purring all the while.

The lieutenant couldn't help but chuckle. "You uh... always greet people like this?"

Felicia kept on nuzzling, her reply muffled into his clothes. "No, I... I'm just glad you're back."

Van Hauser chuckled again, then winced as he received a playful bite on the neck. He gave Felicia one last squeeze, then slowly set her down on the floor. The pair stood there for a moment, just staring and losing themselves on each other's eyes.

Van Hauser snapped out of it first, yawning and placing a hand or her head. He rubbed and scratched behind her ear, getting a small twitch and laugh in return.

Just like a normal household cat, Felicia began to press her head on his hand, enjoying the rugged surface of his calloused hands. He kept going as the two entered the building, closing the door behind them before she hugged him again.

He took a moment to scan the interior. Two beds sat by the corners in the far back, with a wall running down the middle of the room between the two. A flight of stairs by the front door led to the upper level, and a small table with four chairs laid on the opposite side.

Felicia looked up to him again. "I... didn't expect you to come back so quick. When you just upped and left, I thought... I was scared." Van Hauser smiled as he removed his hand, once again placing it on her back.

"Well, you weren't half wrong, we did have a pretty big fight on our hands. After that, it was just making sure Italica was safe again before coming back."

He paused for a second, the image of a burning Burglen crossing his mind. "We... had a bit of a detour. Otherwise I might have been here sooner."

Felicia stared quizzically for a moment. "You were at Italica? Wha- how? We are days away."

William merely smiled. "Everything is possible with technology these days. It only took us a few hours."

"Hours?" Her face lit up like a christmas tree, her cat-like fangs glinting as she smiled. "I've always wanted to see Italica, but I never had the time to go. They say the markets there are the most amazing in the Empire, with wares from all across the continent."

Van Hauser gave her a playful grin. Everything she just said would make the gift all the more meaningful.

"Would you like to see those wares?"

She closed her eyes and nodded, smiling all the while. "Very much so."

"Say, uh... Could you do me a favor real quick, then?"

"Nyah?"

"Close your eyes."

Felicia stood back and complied, her ears perking down as she closed her eyes. He pulled the necklace from his pocket and unhooked it, then wrapping it on her neck and snapping it close.

The girl's eyes shot wide open, feeling the cold metal brushing her skin. She ran her hands across the intricate craft work, admiring the gems in the room's white lighting.

"Wha- what? William, you... for me?"

Van Hauser could only chuckle at her antics. "Well, yeah, I mean..." He brought a hand to scratch his head. "I wouldn't go putting someone else's necklace on you now, would I?"

Felicia's eyes continued to eye the shiny gift, her mind struggling to wrap around her feelings. "Why?"

"Well, it felt like the nice thing to do. Back where I come from, getting gifts for people who mean a lot to you is a common practice."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

She closed the gap and kissed him, wrapping herself around the man and letting herself loose. She slowly began to pull him towards the bed, getting closer and closer with every tongue twist. Once beside it, the lieutenant took the initiative, throwing both of them over the covers and breaking the kiss.

He looked down at her, knowing full well what was about to happen.

Or, at least, he thought so.

"You uh... sure about this?"

She merely nodded, her cat-like eyes fixed on his.

"Okay."

He suddenly felt her arms wrap on him again, and a strange, cold feeling in the back of his neck. She grinned playfully at him.

"You're mine now."

He was about to press on when something sharp poked him in the back. Then another, and finally around ten of them.

"Fel, what are you-"

She gave him an evil, toothy smile "You're mine."

"Wait, no. No. Don't you fu-" The rest of his words were muffled by her mouth, and he shut his eyes and braced himself in realization.

The pain he would endure through the night and many others to come would be a small price to pay for two worlds coming together in an intimate way.

 _I'm probably the world's worst platoon commander._


	21. Worlds Collide

**Jesus...well Here We Go Again huh?  
**

 **It's been a while, well, it's always a long wait in between chapters. I'm always going back and editing stupid shit I thought was cool when I first started. It's a never ending battle.  
**

 **Anyways, hope everyone's having a good summer and had a good Forth of July. Life as a veteran in college is going pretty good though, getting them good grades using that good G.I. Bill.**

 **Now to this chapter, lets give a round of applause to my nigga Kochi. Seriously, we've been up and at it every night till three AM. Me typing, him editing. In fact, he was supposed to be studying and instead took time out of his day to help finish proof reading this chapter.**

 **Again, round of applause.**

 **Anyways, looking forward to talking to all of you. Seriously, always good to hear from my readers.**

 **NOW LETS GO!**

 **"He probably wrote all of this in Baboon speak. FIX YOUR FUCKING COMMAS."-Kochi**

 ***Edit* By the way, I took the M416s out. Let's be honest people, it was fucking stupid and a throwback to when I first started this story. I thought it was cool to tote new toys around. But get this, the logistics weren't adding up. We're more likely to replace all our M16s with M4s/M4A1s before we switch over to a new system.**

 **Sorry about that, but honestly it doesn't effect the story at all.  
**

 **I'm a stickler for these things.**

* * *

 **Chapter 21: Worlds Collide**

 _"The American Marines have it [pride], and benefit from it. They are tough, cocky, sure of themselves and their buddies. They can fight and they know it."_ General Mark Clark, U.S. Army

 **DECEMBER 15TH, 0700 HOURS, FOB ALNUS, KANE'S OFFICE  
**

"Alright. Nielsen, was it? Take a seat, and we'll start from the top."

Kane rubbed his forehead and sighed in exhaustion as he put his coffee mug down. In truth, he could have scheduled this debrief for earlier. What remained of the unit that had been at Burglen didn't return until three o clock, around the same time Kane had left his office and turned in for the night.

However, even a colonel needed rest. The burdens of leadership are mentally and physically taxing. Besides, he already got a rundown of the events from Sergeant Van Hauser.

"So, what happened?"

"To be frank, sir, things were... pretty hectic."

"Define, 'pretty hectic', lieutenant."

Nielsen winced, giving his aching knees a quick stretch before settling back into his upright position. "The bastards were smart, sir. They used the environment to their advantage. They had plenty of room to close the gap, and when coupled with the same tenacity we've seen so far..."

The lieutenant paused as he remembered the battle, the shocked expressions of those he killed.

"They were... a royal pain in the ass, sir."

Kane sat there for a moment, pausing to look at some paperwork on his desk. "According to this, they, and I quote, 'committed genocide of the highest degree against humanoid individuals, including, but not limited to, throwing a child out of a window as bait, wanton slaughter of locals, and possibly a mass execution of prisoners.'"

The colonel slowly looked up at Nielsen."'All while showing no visible signs of regret or remorse in their actions, claiming to having done so for food.'"

The lieutenant merely nodded as Kane sighed, taking another sip from his mug. "Casualties?"

"Light sir, some cuts and bruises. The arrows were the biggest problem. Sneaky bastards could pop out of anywhere, and let fly."

"They pierced the flaks?"

"No, sir. Those were lucky shots that hit the unarmored areas. They couldn't tell the difference between kevlar and fabric. Good thing, too."

"No magic?"

The lieutenant raised an eyebrow. "Not that we could see."

"That's what I thought."

Kane sighed, no deaths and no militarized magic. Regardless of him already knowing all that, it was reassuring to get a first hand account. The colonel took another sip from his mug, before raising an eyebrow.

"And the Japanese?"

"Surprisingly well, sir. A lot of the younger guys like to rag on em, but nobody did so after clearing that village out though."

The lieutenant paused, bringing a hand to rub his nape. "But, uh..."

Kane cocked his head to the side. "But?"

"They could definitely use some more experience in urban environments. Training with carbines is one thing. Putting it into practice with those long rifles they have is an entirely different one. They were a little on the slow side at first, but they started to pick it up once we got into the thick of it. Surprising, considering some had probably been at Ginza. Doesn't get more urban than that."

The colonel folded his arms. "Different unit. Either way, you said the long rifles were hindering them? Their Type 64s?"

"Yes, sir, hell of a clunky ass rifle. No shotguns either. You'd think they would've brought some of their newer kit in, or at least get some shotguns from us."

"They're reluctant to bring anything new in. They fear they might lose their best kit, should the gate close. As for the shotguns, they'd need to get trained up in operating those. There's a reason why the use a lighter powder charge in their ammunition.."

Nielsen couldn't help but chuckle with a nod. "Different body structure? The shit quality steel?"

"Precisely."

There was silence for a few moments as the two officers sat there, each reflecting on Burglen. "Tell me, lieutenant, you aware of what went down at the diet?"

"No, sir. I heard some rumors about it, but that's about it." The lieutenant cocked his head to the side. "Did, something bad happen?"

The colonel sighed. "Yes and no. Yes, in that both our boys and the Japanese soldiers had fingers pointed at them. Yes, in that what was discussed at that summons has only made the gravity of this campaign far bigger. Bigger than anything we could've been prepared for." He paused as he rubbed his forehead in frustration.

"What you experienced at Burglen, Nielsen, was just the tip of the iceberg. Everyone back home got a taste of what this world has to offer, and they didn't like it."

Nielsen's face twisted into one of puzzlement as he let the information sink in. What exactly did the colonel mean?

"Got a taste?"

"Evidently, the refugees saw it fit to divulge a number of...iffy topics. Slavery and ethnic purges being chief among them. To be fair, they didn't know any better, But god damnit. Someone should have warned them."

The lieutenant merely sat there, unsure of whether or not anything he had to say was worth adding in. His job was accomplishing the mission, and taking care of his Marines, not worrying about politics. He couldn't help but feel uneasy, however. There was far more at stake in this campaign than anything he had ever been a part of before.

"Nielsen, do you have any goddamn idea what this means?"

"No sir."

"It means we're going to have even more magnifying glasses shoved up our asses. Once we get the immediate area stabilized, and we're well on our way towards doing that. I have absolutely no doubt the UN will start rolling in, both civilians and peacekeepers."

Nielsen cocked his head to the side. "Sir... isn't that a good thing? If the UN comes in, they'll likely bring aid. That'll make our guys' lives a hell of a lot easier. We'll be able to focus on military operations."

Kane sighed. "That's not the point. Point is, things are going to get a whole hell of a lot more crowded around here. More bodies, more materiel, more logistics. To make matters worse, there's no telling who'll be coming our way. Think about it, lieutenant. Peacekeepers and humanitarian workers. We'll have to babysit them, train them up on how to conduct business here. It's going to make things a lot more dicey.

"Heh, for all I know, the UN might send us fucking Georgians."

The tired and clearly stressed colonel leaned back into his chair, running his hands over his face as he dispelled the thought of those imbeciles. God forbid they actually were sent through. Once he was calmed, he went back to folding his hands.

"Anyways, was there anything else you needed to share?"

The lieutenant shook his head. "No sir."

"Right then, we're done here, lieutenant."

The lieutenant promptly stood up from his seat, assuming the position of attention. "Good morning sir."

"Dismissed."

"Aye sir."

With that Nielsen, fetched his gear and made his way to the office door, leaving Kane alone with his thoughts and paperwork.

It was a temporary peace, though. No sooner had the door closed, Kane heard the telltale sign of boots clapping together and the traditional "good morning, sir" coming from the hallway.

There was only a few officers who rated that kind of greeting.

Kane's suspicions were confirmed as the office door opened again, revealing an equally tired looking Hazama.

"Joseph, you look like shit."

"I feel like shit."

Hazama merely chuckled as he folded his arms. "Well, best turn your attitude around; I've got some interesting news for you. That 'siren' your raiders brought back? She talked."

Kane raised an eyebrow and looked up from his work, finally some good news.

"About time."

"Yes. Come, let's grab some chow, we can discuss this during breakfast."

* * *

 **1000 HOURS, RISA'S APARTMENT, TOKYO JAPAN**

The sounds of birds chirping, the hustle and bustle of city life, a beam of sunlight coming in through some blinds, the still lingering cold, no working heater to stave it off.

Wilkes's snoring, the entire room almost shaking with every heave. Only a select few used to that sound stood any chance of sleeping through it.

Kincaid slowly opened his eyes, rising up from the couch he had been sleeping on. He stretched out and yawned, then paused for a second to adjust his eyes to the light. Glancing around the room, he shook his head as he took in the amusing, yet blurred, sight. People were crammed just about anywhere and everywhere space could be provided, an uncomfortable yet unavoidable sleeping arrangement. It was only through luck, and a good hand during a game of cards, that Kincaid had won the couch at all.

Spoils of war.

The gunner let out another yawn as he fetched his glasses from a nearby stand, quickly redonning the bomber jacket he used as makeshift blanket.

He was the only one awake. Unfortunate, considering it meant that nobody was ready to get up and go anywhere. Seeing as how there was clearly no food to be had, there was only one other thing to do.

Go outside for a smoke.

With great care, and meticulous movements, Kincaid slowly stood up from the couch and made his way out of the room. A task easier said than done, considering the entire floor was littered with bodies in various odd positions. Stepping over a dishevelled looking Wilkes and Benitez, Kincaid finally made his way out of the living room. Before he exited, he gave a quick glance at his surrogate caretaker to make sure she was still asleep.

Like Kincaid, Kurokawa had been fortunate enough to win the other couch. Adjacent from Kincaid's, it put the pair in the odd position of being able to watch each other sleep. A situation Kincaid was pretty sure the medic had indulged in.

Something he had caught himself doing a few times, too.

Thankfully, the medic was knocked out like everyone else, her head being the only thing exposed from a dirty looking blanket. He paused for a moment and looked at her. In a way, she had a certain charm to her even while sleeping. The way her hair flowed down and partially obscured her face.

Drama or not, Aurea or not, He was attracted to Mair, and in another life, he would've gladly pursued her. If there was actually something developing that is, no need to assume anything just yet.

 _Why am I even thinking about this?_

Kincaid stifled another yawn and paused at the door's entrance to don his boots. Japanese custom, after all. With great care, he then slowly opened the door and made his way outside.

And right in front of Rory, the apostle grinning from ear to ear as she saw his surprised expression. "Ah, good morning, Jasper. Came to join me in enjoying this beautiful morning?"

 _Out of the frying pan and into the fucking fire._

Kincaid sighed as he fetched his cigarettes from out of one of his jacket's breast pockets. "Yeah, you caught me."

Lighting a cigarette and letting out a cloud of smoke, he made his way over to the railing and stared out at the city beyond. "So, how you liking our side?"

"I've lived a long life, Jasper; seen a great many things. Magic, great beasts, kingdoms rise and fall..." The apostle paused as she outstretched her arms towards the sights beyond. "But this... this is unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's both fascinating and..."

He took another drag. "Humbling?"

"Yes."

There was silence for a few moments as the pair looked off into the distance. To Kincaid, it was surprising to see Rory like this. With the exception of the subway ride, he had only ever seen her as annoying, if not downright unsettling to be around.

Being a nine hundred year old "apostle" didn't help her situation much, either. It was like as if someone had flipped a switch; her entire persona seemed to change.

Kincaid couldn't help but wonder if the smug persona was just a facade, a coping mechanism, much like what the Marines used in order to push through the bullshit. It was hard for him to imagine the burden of immortality; the human mind is not built to stand such thing.

"Say, Jasper," she cut of his thoughts. "Japan is an interesting place, more than I could ever hope to imagine." Rory paused as she looked at Kincaid. "But this isn't like your home, is it? I've noticed a great contrast between Marines and Jieitai, so similar yet different, as if you lived worlds apart."

Rory cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow. "Tell me, what lands do you hail from?"

Kincaid paused as he took another drag, letting out a cloud of smoke as he pondered the question. Sure, he had lived overseas many years of his life, but a lot of people on earth had an idea of what America was, what its people were like. Having to explain it to someone from a completely different world wasn't the same as explaining it to someone who had a rough idea. At least they knew what the basic technology and civilization were.

"Well, crap... Where do I begin?" Kincaid let his cigarette hang from his mouth as he held onto the railing, looking off into the distance. "There's a lot I could say."

 _Large fields of green in sloping hills, cloudless, bright summer days. Fall and winter come, brown leaves everywhere, the heat from your breath visible in the air._

 _My home...god I want to go home._

"Well, I guess I'll start small. We come from a place called America. It's a vast, open land, much bigger than Japan is, with all the climates you can imagine. Heh, it's so big that we have it split into several states. Fifty, to be exact."

Rory raised an eyebrow. "Like, vassal states?"

"Not quite, but close. See.." Kincaid paused and furrowed his brow. This was proving to be a lot more difficult than he thought it would be. He was a Marine not a geography major.

"Well, each state can more or less govern itself. They have their own governors, flags and sets of laws, but they all work towards the good of the whole. Hence why we're also known as the United States of America."

Rory repeated the name as she tried to picture a land even bigger than Japan. "The United States of Ah-merry-ca?" She nodded before cocking her head to the side. "What is it like there?"

Kincaid couldn't help but smile as the pride for his nation started to overcome him. "Oh, we have it all, Rory. Mountains, deserts, places where it snows a lot, cities even bigger than Tokyo, with towers that touch the skies, and cars everywhere."

"Cars?"

Kincaid shook his head. "Oh right, the uh... smaller iron wagons you see us use."

Rory stood awestruck as Kincaid continued. "And our people... there's people from all over the world there. Different cultures, ethnicities and religions. Our people can come from everywhere, Rory, but we all call ourselves Americans. It's that sense of unity that we pride ourselves on."

 _Something I wish we prided ourselves more on these days._

"People that look like Wilkes and the others at Alnus?"

Kincaid chuckled. "Sure are. We're what you can call... a melting pot, different ingredients all forming a whole."

Rory stood there with a finger under her chin, digesting the information for a few moments as she tried to comprehend it all. Finally she nodded before smiling. "And what state do you come from?"

His pride was replaced with longing as the name left his lips. "Maryland."

"Merry-land?" Rory smiled. "That sounds like a lovely place to live. Does it live up to its name?"

Not often.

"Yeah, for the most part."

"What does it look like?"

"Well, we got a little bit of everything. Cities, forests, hills, mountains... I live in a pretty rural area, lots of farmland and forests. I don't have to travel too far to get to populated areas, though."

He paused for a second. "Well, 'far' by our standards, at least."

Rory held the railing and looked out into the distance. "If I had the chance, I would like to see this United States of Ah-merry-ca. It sounds like a truly interesting place." She smiled and looked back at Kincaid. "Especially if it produces fine warriors such as yourself, they should be proud of their Marines."

Kincaid flicked his cigarette butt over the side and sighed. "Well, we're but one of their many armies. We like to hold ourselves to a high standard, though, and we have a deep history that coincides with America itself."

"Different armies?"

"Yeah, we have the Army, Air Force, Navy, the National Guard, the Coast guard, and finally, us." He let the next words out with pride. "The United States Marine Corps."

"And what makes you different from them?"

Kincaid chuckled. "Simply, put? We get the job done the right way the first time."

"I can see that."

Before the conversation could continue, the pair saw two Black SUVs drive down the street. The agents had returned. As he waved them down, Rory spoke once more.

"Jasper, do you miss home?"

The Corporal merely sighed as the SUVs pulled up.

"Yeah, everyday."

 **XXXXXXX**

"So? How'd you niggas sleep?" Elton muttered to the rest of his crew, the Marines busying themselves with just trying to stay awake and keep out of ear shot.

Wilkes rubbed his forehead and yawned before shaking his head. "Like shit." An equally tired Benitez and Kincaid merely nodded in agreement before the loader continued. "Bout you?"

Elton glanced at Samantha, the woman being preoccupied with keeping their daughter from tugging Tuka's ears. The further the elf inched away from her, the closer Abigail got, making everyone chuckle at her expense.

Meanwhile, Lelei and Rory looked absolutely fascinated with the child, as if an earth born human was any different than one born in the Special Region.

The tank commander glanced back at his crew and cocked his head to the side. "Well after the little monster went to bed, like a fucking champion."

The rest of the crew chuckled, Wilkes rapidly raising his eyebrows as he leaned his head forward. "Yams, dawg? Beat cheeks?"

"Like the brakes off a bus, fam."

Kincaid glared. "Yeah, must be fucking nice."

Wilkes gave his gunner a playful nudge before repeating the same expression he had used on Elton. "Have no fear, our night is coming."

"Bro I thought I said-"

"Bitch you said nothing. Stop being a puss boy and just have fun, bruh." Wilkes subtly gestured towards the medic. "Look at her man, you can't tell me she's not cute."

Kincaid looked at Kurokawa, watching her for a few moments before sighing. "Well, yeah..."

"Well yeah? Bruh, listen to yourself. You're being unreasonable, stop worrying about everything. Fuck the Special Region, fuck snake girl, fuck all of it. This is life, this is the life you had before all of this shit. Stop worrying, stop caring, be fucking human, bro. If she tries to hold your hand, hold it. If she smiles, smile back. The fucking Jasper I know would be all bout it."

Wilkes's face turned to one of utmost seriousness as he leaned in. "Enjoy this, bro. We don't fuckin know what tomorrow's gonna bring. Might as well live while you can." He paused and looked at Shino, the sergeant glancing back and smiling.

"I know I am."

Elton leaned in, putting an hand on his gunner's shoulder. "He's right, bro. As the Beatles once said 'Let it Be'."

Benitez leaned in as well, giving a smirk. "Come on man, snake girl isn't going anywhere. Let's just enjoy all of this, worry about her when its time to worry. Shit, least you got something going on."

Kincaid stood there for a few moments, glancing at Kurokawa once more before feeling a sort of warmth overtake him.

 _Fuck it._

"Yeah, yeah you're right." The corporal nodded. "I'm going to enjoy this. I uh... sorry about all of that, alright? My brains just been jumping around a lot lately."

Elton smirked. "Man, you're always stressin shit. That's why we're here." He put his fist in "It be this ugly mother fucka?"

The rest of the crew put their fists in and promptly bumped his. With all the drama, and general ups and downs the campaign had given the crew, they had almost forgotten their slogan. It had been so long since they had done it last, but now was a good a time as ever. It was a war cry they used whenever times were rough, or they needed a quick motivational pick me up.

Sort of. They just enjoyed being the man children they were. More often than not, they just said it to utterly flabbergast their superiors.

As one, the crew muttered with some chuckles. "Backpage what I'm reppin."

As the troops and the guests continued to pack everything up and generally tidy up the place, Jackson finally clapped his hands together as he entered the living room with the other two agents.

"Right. So, news regarding the string of.." He paused trying to find a good word to describe the events. "Coincidences that went down yesterday, we got nothing. Whatever the hell is going on has our bosses in a bit of a fluster."

Jackson looked at Itami with a raised eyebrow. "Yours too, Itami. So, we're going to try something different. It's a little off the beaten path, but we're pretty confident it oughta work." The agent folded his arms and started to pace back and forth, a habit Kincaid knew all to well whenever his father was about to start talking way too long.

"So, obviously someone either knows what our general plans are, or is doing a real good job of following us. I don't like being followed, do you?"

A unanimous series of head shakes.

"Didn't think so. That being said, we're gonna go off the grid. All of us. You guys are going to split up into different groups, and go off do whatever the hell you want. Whoever these guys are, they're gonna be pretty ticked off when they find out we're not sticking to a tight schedule anymore."

Jackson paused from pacing, turning to face the group. "Once we feel everything is kosher, we're going to pick you guys up and take you to Hakone. Lucky you, the place they got you guys staying at is pretty nice. Scoped it out ourselves weeks earlier."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow from his spot atop the edge of one of the couches. "Hakone? What's that?"

"Basically a safe house of sorts, owned by Public Safety. Hell of a VIP safe house though, place looks more like a resort. They got a hot spring and everything, guess they wanted their guests to really get a good impression of earth."

At the words 'hot spring' and 'resort', all of the troops' spirits were visibly raised. Wilkes in particular, nudging Kincaid as he mumbled. "Nigguh, hot spring, resort- We're fucking set."

"A -the fuck- men."

Jackson paused and glanced at the Special Region inhabitants before looking at Itami. "Make sure you let them know."

The officer merely shook his head before Lelei poked her head out from behind a book she had been reading. "I can understand you, you know."

Rory removed her attention from Elton's daughter and nodded at the agent. "As can I."

Seeing himself at a loss, Jackson merely nodded. "Right... Forgot about that. So, any questions?"

Aldritch was, logically, the first to speak up. "What happens if you don't find everything 'kosher'?"

Jackson exchanged a glance with the other two agents, Heidegger cracking his knuckles as Jackson's expression changed to one of utmost seriousness. "We grab all of you, force our way back to the gate, and get you out of here. We're hoping by about..." The agent paused as he thought to himself.

"...six we can give the all clear, and get you guys over to Hakone. Good enough for you sir?"

Aldritch nodded before folding his arms. "Sounds fine by me. But, uh, where are you guys going to be? How are we going to stay in contact?"

Jackson smirked. "Oh, we'll be watching. Don't bother trying to look for us. Just make sure you don't go underground, or anywhere too crazy. When it's time to go, it'll be time to go. For better, or for worse."

The lieutenant merely nodded before folding his arms and glancing at his Japanese counterpart. "Right then. Itami, you got anything to add?"

Itami stood there for a few moments, a finger under his chin as he pondered the situation for a few moments. In truth, being able to do whatever he wanted translated to catching up on his favorite hobbies. Who was he to complain? In fact, he would've been jumping for joy if not for the fact that people were watching.

"Nope, all good." He paused before raising an eyebrow, glancing at everyone else. "Well, there are a lot of people. I suppose we'll just split off into groups? If that's the case who's going with who?"

Kincaid didn't have to look, he could already feel Mari's gaze burning into the side of his skull. Truth be told he couldn't, and wouldn't, complain. A promise was a promise. He and Wilkes had a double date, after all, the plans of which had been laid out the night prior, a slightly tipsy Shino going through a long list of places they had to go to.

'If they had time off', that is. Coincidence or fate, the Marines couldn't be sure. With the addition of the long list of things they still had to get for their platoon mates, it was going to be a long day. Still, beat the hell out of working.

All that remained were the other groups, the details of which were quickly sorted out. Aldritch and Tomita would take the royals to the local library, Piña having insisted on learning as much as she could about this world and it's people, Elton and his family would go off and get some much needed time together, joining up in a tourist trip their hotel offered. Meanwhile, keeping to his word, Itami would allow Risa to take the three girls out to do god knew what.

The only problem was, that group was missing something, a fact that Rory quickly made clear with a mischievous smile on her face.

"But what if we find interesting wares? Surely you can't expect us ladies to carry around heavy items all day?"

Everyone looked at her with incredulous looks.

"She's right." Lelei stated matter of factly, her eyes shifting away from Abigail.

By now the child had successfully wormed her way out of Samantha's grasp, only making it halfway to the elf before Elton scooped her up and into a piggyback ride. He joined up with the other crewmen, an idea popping up in his mind. He turned his head to the left, the others meeting his sight and smirking in agreement.

Benitez.

The Hispanic Marine merely looking around with wild eyes before sighing. It was a battle he was doomed to lose from the start.

"Fine..."

"I knew there was a gentlemen in you!" Rory clapped her hands before looking at everyone else. "Well, then, let us be off!" Aldritch nodded in agreement before spinning his hand in the air. "Well, you heard the lady. Your Highness..?" His voice seemed to trail off as he looked over at the royals, tilting his head inquisitively at them.

Throughout the entirety of the morning's events, nobody had really been paying attention to Piña and Bozes much. Ever since they woke up, the pair had secluded themselves to a corner, their backs facing everyone else, and muttering among themselves in low hushes. What nobody had noticed however, was that they hadn't actually been talking in secret.

They had been hiding, and for good reason. As Aldritch made his way over, he glanced in disgust at the book the pair had been engrossed in, before shaking his head and snatching it from them. The two promptly snapped out of their hypnotic trance, Piña protesting as he held it up higher than they could reach.

"This... literature is not suitable for you, your Highness."

He swiftly stepped away and placed the book in the highest shelf he could find, it's contents remaining a mystery to everybody else.

That is, until it fell off, the badly kept shelf slightly giving under the small book's pressure. Said book fell on the floor with a thud, and opened on a random page, displaying it's contents for all to see.

Boy Love manga.

Elton swiftly distracted his daughter as Aldritch picked up the book again, this time grabbing it by the edge with only index and thumb. The others simply gave awkward chuckles as he placed it on another shelf, making sure this one was actually firm.

Meanwhile, the royals shrank themselves in their corner, in a mix of horror and shame. Their secrets were exposed to the world.

The lieutenant glanced at them and frowned, then stepped up to Tomita and whispered in a low voice.

"We should probably get them some clothes."

"What for?"

The Marine rolled his eyes. "Do you want to take them into a library wearing that?"

The sergeant looked at the odd getup both the royals had before nodding. Truth be told, much like Aldritch, he was a man of appearances. He didn't like attracting unreasonable attention to himself both in and out of uniform.

"Say no more, sir. I know a few places."

With everything out of the way, the group slowly began to funnel out of the condo. Aldritch, however, realised the royals were still inside, and had no choice but to go back in and beckon at Piña and Bozes to have them snap out.

"Highnesses? We have to go."

The two merely sat there in their corner, heads buried on their knees. For a second he wished he had a bag of cookies with him. That would get them to react. However, an idea popped on his head.

"Come on, or we'll be late. The sergeant and I were instructed to buy you uh... presents."

Their faces lit up immediately as the two young girls snapped their eyes in his direction. "Presents?"

Meanwhile, the other groups were about to split off, walking to the SUVs.

"So it's about time huh? I can't wait to show you around town Jasper." Kincaid paused as Mari walked in step with him, the medic playfully nudging him as the pair lagged behind the others.

Kincaid nudged her back, returning the same smile she had given him. "Hell yeah."

"You look pretty upbeat. That's a first. Something I oughta know?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes at a now surprised Kurokawa, shaking his head before chuckling. "Nah, I'm just in a good mood."

"Care to share?"

"Just been looking forward to this."

Two pairs of eyes met for a few minutes. "So have I."

* * *

 **1000 HOURS, SHIBUYA DISTRICT**

"Well, this is something." Aldritch looked around at the various outlets and whistled as the group got off the SUV. No sooner had the agents said their byes, the black vehicle slowly drove off and disappeared amongst the winding streets.

The new scenery was definitely a change of pace, compared to the areas they had been through before. Various pedestrians went on about their daily lives through the crowded streets, a few stopping occasionally to look at the two oddly dressed foreigners and their male escorts.

The lieutenant was no stranger to cities, having been to plenty back home and during various trips. Piña and Bozes, on the other hand, found themselves once again walking through a different planet. The pair stared at the various buildings, the flashing lights and odd outlets here and there. The two military men found themselves suppressing laughter more than once as they caught the royals staring at their new surroundings, eyes wide and mouths agape.

"Ma'am? You okay?"

Piña snapped out of her trance as Aldritch started walking in step with her, Tomita doing the same with Bozes further ahead.

"Yes. It's just that... well, we've been here but a day, and no matter where we go, I still can't help but just be utterly.."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow. "Taken aback by it all?"

"Yes. Very much so."

"Yeah, you should've seen us when we first came to your world. The silence was... unnerving to say the least."

Piña looked at the lieutenant, shocked at the idea that their world could be any more fascinating than this one. "Really? How so?"

"When we came through the gate, we didn't really know what to expect. We had sent some scouts in early on, but the word that trickled back to us was all rumors and hearsay. All we knew was that your air was breathable, and that there wasn't anything we hadn't seen at Ginza." He paused. "Oh, and that it was indeed an entirely unknown world. Of course, we didn't know just how big it was, or what exactly it would look like."

Piña took a second to let his words sink in, then replied with further curiosity. "And what were your thoughts when you crossed through? Was it... more than you had expected?"

Aldritch nodded as his voice started to trail off. "I've seen a lot of sights before, ma'am. I'm no stranger to the great outdoors. But all that land, all that green?" He looked directly into the princess's eyes. "Highness, your world has a level of beauty to it all of its own."

Piña almost stopped at that remark. Here she and the others were gawking at foreign army's world, when they had been gawking at theirs the whole time. Strangers in foreign lands, each having something to show one another.

But, even still, she couldn't help but wonder. What did Aldritch see in her land that was so amazing?

"That is... surprising, to say the least. I didn't expect we had much to offer in comparison to your world."

Aldritch chuckled at Piña's statement as he shook his head. "We can appreciate the simple things, too, you know. I'm sure many of my men actually feel right at home in your world. Some of their homes don't look too different."

 _Don't look too different? Are we closer than we give ourselves credit for?_

Piña dispelled the thought from her mind before cocking her head to the side. "And what is _**your**_ home like?"

The Marine merely pointed to all the buildings and smiled. "Pretty much this." The lieutenant paused as the group stopped at an intersection, through which a huge crowd seemed to be moving through. Having no choice but to walk across the sea of people, Aldritch and Tomita beckoned at the royals to stay close, and slowly began worming their way across the crowd.

Of course, neither of them noticed the vice grips the girls had on their sleeves.

"You know, your highness, it's a shame it had to go down this way."

Piña raised an eyebrow as the group continued its way down another busy sidewalk. "What do you mean?"

"This war. It's a shame our worlds had to meet like this, with war guiding us through."

"I know. I, too, long for a chance at peace, lieutenant."

"We all do. Believe me when I say this, ma'am. Most of us are actually very interested in learning more about your world." The lieutenant smiled. "Hell, I'd like to learn about your home, for a change. How _**you**_ live."

The princess's eyes lit up at this statement. _He..wants to learn about, me?_

The moment of hope quickly subsided though, as soon Aldritch's face took on a serious expression. "But make no mistake, highness. My superiors want to see this through to the end. If the Empire won't listen to reason, we will have no choice but to make them see it."

The two broke eye contact when Tomita called out, and pointed at one of the outlets across the street. After a quick nod, group made its way towards it, crossing the road before sinking themselves in another crowd.

By this point, Aldritch had noticed Piña's hand on his sleeve. He stared it for a second as they kept walking, and blinked, before she took notice and quickly removed it in embarrassment.

She tried to look away to hide her blush, but then felt the Marine's hand on her shoulder. Her eyes met a determined gaze, the mood getting serious again. "Princess, if you have any authority, any sway in the governing of your people, then I urge you. You have the power to help end this war, but you have to work with us."

As the group stopped in front of the store, Aldritch removed his hand and looked at the princess dead in the eyes. "But first, we have a lot to cover, and a very short period of time."

Piña nodded. The man's terms were clear. She was no stranger to politics, the fact that his army was even willing to have an audience with the enemy was clearly a step in the right direction. She gave him a confident smile. "Whatever it takes lieutenant. I love my people, and I would gladly lay my life down for them."

Aldritch nodded and smiled as well. "Any good warrior should. But first," he pointed to the clothing store. "Lets go take a look around. We are here to buy you some presents, after all."

The princess promptly returned the gesture, her face lighting up once more. "Of course, do lead on."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Tomita-san!" one of the attendants greeted in Japanese, raising her hand up high and jogging towards the group. "Long time no see!"

"The feeling is mutual, Inoue-san. Chipper as usual, eh?"

"Well of course! One must always love their work." She looked to his side at the others in the group. "But, hey, who are these two fine ladies and gentleman?"

"Friends. He's an officer in the Marine Corps."

"Oh? On leave from Okinawa, then?"

"Eh.. not quite."

There was some silence as the woman eyed the two royals, tilting her head before looking at Tomita with wide eyes. "Wait, you guys went-"

Tomita promptly glared and shushed her. "Shut it. Look, we're on leave right now, and don't have a lot of time. These ladies need something trendy that'll help them blend in."

A pause. "But not too expensive, alright? They don't pay me that much."

"But of course! Right this way ladies, I have just the thing!"

The woman stopped before glancing back at Tomita with a raised eyebrow. "We have a lot of catching up to do about all of this."

"Of course."

"Oh, and how's your girlfriend doing? Still-"

His shaking head interrupted her questioning. "No. We broke up months ago, right before it happened."

"Oh, well. Life goes on!"

With that, the woman promptly whisked two very confused royals away leaving the two men to talk amongst themselves.

"You look down. What did she ask?"

"My ex."

"Let me guess. Work got in the way?"

"Yeah. That, and a misunderstanding involving guard duty. She was of the jealous type."

"Been there, heard that." Was all Aldritch had said, a smile on his lips all the while. It was timeless story he had heard countless times from his Marines.

"So, didn't peg your superior officer as a Ranger."

"You'd be surprised. I actually trained with him, same class."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow at this statement. "Ranger, too? Well shit. Learn something new everyday." Tomita merely folded his arms in response, a look of pride on his face as he began to recount the tale.

"Yeah. Honestly, I have no idea how he even graduated. Rumor was he pissed off his CO so much, the man just sent him off in hopes the school would chew him up and spit him back out."

"Guessing that didn't work."

"Clearly. I mean, his scores were sub par in just about everything. He had a knack for thinking outside of the box, though," he added, chuckling a bit before continuing. "Definitely a trait you want in the SOG community."

"Well, that makes me feel a hell of a lot better. Can't lie, though. We had plenty of guys in Officer Candidate School that definitely weren't cut out for leading Marines. But, still, there they are. Most of the ones I keep in contact with shaped up pretty good." Aldritch sighed before shrugging.

"So long as he does his job, and keeps his men safe, can't complain. Right?"

"Exactly."

The pair stood around for a few minutes, glancing at the confused royals as they were juggled around into the changing rooms by an ecstatic Inoue, several expensive looking clothes hanging from her arms.

"So, what's your story?"

Tomita scratched his head at Aldritch's question. "Story?"

"You know, why'd you enlist? That's one of the oldest questions in the book."

Tomita shrugged. "Well, I guess it was a mixture of boredom, and try to do something worth doing. Let's be honest, sir. Nothing happens around here. We're stuck on an island, and most of my people are content to sit out their entire lives in Japan."

The lieutenant smirked, he'd heard this one plenty of times. "And I'm guessing you're not one of them."

"Absolutely not." Tomita nodded before continuing. "I figured, if I was going to be stuck here? I'd be damned if I didn't at least get the opportunity, the chance to maybe go somewhere and get a sense of accomplishment."

"And did you get that?"

The sergeant tilted his head sideways. "More or less. The first couple years nothing happened. I got in a few years after the Iraq deployment, and was hoping to deploy somewhere as well. No such luck, though."

Aldritch nodded, he had heard about that deployment. "Did you get to talk to any of those guys?" The lieutenant asked with a raised eyebrow as he reflected on the topic.

"A few, mainly the Sergeant Major Kuwahara. We all looked up to him in NCO school, since he got to deploy and actually do something constructive instead of sitting around on base. His drills were a bitch, though."

"I know the feeling. I actually hit the fleet right as Kincaid's company came back from Afghanistan. They were the last active tank company over there. Since then, it's been mostly quiet."

Tomita sighed. "Well, guess that makes two of us. Anyways, after that I kept myself busy trying to be the best soldier I could be. I applied for Ranger School, but after I graduated that it was right back to more of the same. In fact, it wasn't until Operation Tomodachi that I really found my purpose." He paused and nodded in satisfaction. "The reason I enlisted."

Aldritch merely stood there and listened intently as the sergeant continued. He knew damn well what Tomodachi was.

"To be over there and help those people, helping them rebuild. It was, satisfying, sir. They looked at us as heroes, it was a really overwhelming feeling."

The sergeant paused and gave the lieutenant a thumbs up. "Thanks for helping us out there."

The Marine officer outstretched a hand, Tomita promptly grasping it as the men gave each other a firm shake. "Anytime sergeant."

As the pair concluded their handshake, Aldritch folded his arms. "So, what happened after that?"

Tomita sighed. "Right back to nothing. I ended up attending paratrooper school in another attempt to keep myself occupied."

"Short term satisfaction?"

"You guessed it. Then, of course, the gate opened up. That changed everything." The sergeant paused and shook his head. "That was a real wake up call, you know? Disaster relief is one thing, but being attacked like that? For the first time in, god... forever? It really bothered a lot of the guys."

Another sigh. "When we got word we were to deploy, there was a lot of excitement. I was pretty excited too, but..."

"Nervous?"

"Yeah, very. And I think a lot of the guys were, too. When we finally stood there outside the gate, looking into that void." Tomita looked over at the lieutenant. "It was mind boggling. But you know how it is. Time to go to work."

"Rah."

Tomita chuckled. "Felt better seeing you guys go in first, though. I heard about your tanks before. At least you would take brunt of whatever was waiting on the other side."

A pause. "And still survive, of course."

Aldritch rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Yeah, well, someone's gotta put on the big boy pants, huh?"

"Oh, of course."

The pair laughed before Tomita raised an eyebrow. "So, what about yours?"

"What about my what?"

"Your story. Why'd you enlist, sir?"

Aldritch let out a sigh and readied himself to tell his long sordid tale. "Well-"

"Uh, Bozes? Hello? Lieutenant Aldritch? Is anyone there?" Aldritch and Tomita paused as Piña's nervous voice came forth from one of the changing booths.

"Yes, I am here your highness." Bozes promptly responded, sounding almost like she was struggling with something. "I will, uh... Be there shortly."

Evidently, Inoue had run off to tend to another customer, leaving the two royals to their own devices.

Which evidently wasn't a smart idea.

"Tomita? I... Could you come here?" As Bozes's nervous voice ushered forth from her own booth, Tomita merely sighed before looking at Aldrtich. "Well, sir, looks like we gotta step in."

"You sure? I'm sure Inoue will-"

"Nope, she always does this. She's easily distracted. We'll just have to take matters into our own hands."

"But, won't someone say something?"

Tomita looked at Aldritch and looked around before smirking. "I used to do this with my ex all the time, we'll be fine."

The lieutenant merely nodded, doing his best to hide his nervousness as he joined the sergeant in answering the call.

* * *

 **1100 HOURS, SOMEWHERE IN TOKYO**

"Bruh, what the hell is this?!"

"Oh no, listen. There's some things even I won't do."

* * *

 _ **NYAN NYAN MAID CAFE**_

 _ **WE ARE EAGER TO PLEASE MASTER!**_

* * *

Kincaid and Wilkes stared nervously at the colorful sign for a few moments, taking note of how utterly cute it attempted to be. How had it come to this?

Everything up till now had been smooth, for the most part. The laundry list of items the platoon had asked for hadn't been too hard to track down; some manga, cigarettes, energy drinks, snacks. Generally, anything that would keep their spirits up and give them a taste of "home." The only problem had been finding a way to lug all the items around, the solution quickly offering itself in the form of Jackson's SUV.

So, naturally, when Shino grinned and told them of a popular place they were stopping by first, the Marines had expected something more akin to a Karaoke bar, or some sort of arcade.

Even Kurokawa was embarrassed.

Shino gave Kincaid a hard smack on the back. "Oh, don't puss out now! When I heard what kind of hobbies you partake in, I knew right off the bat we had to come here." The sergeant paused and looked at Wilkes. "And you, I just wanted to weird you the hell out."

The loader glared in response. "Yo, that's some bullshit. No worries, I gotchu."

The sergeant smiled coyly. "Oh, you do?"

"Yeah, naw just wait."

Kincaid groaned before looking at the rest of the group. "Look, I'm not that far gone. Let's just go somewhere els-"

Shino promptly cut him off. "Oh, no, we're going in. Right Mari?"

The medic merely sighed and nodded. "I don't think anything good will come of this, but..." She then smiled as enthusiastically as she could. "But, we did say we'd show them around town. You can't visit Japan and not stop by one of these at least once. Unfortunately."

Kincaid looked at Kurokawa in disappointment. He hadn't expected her to cave in so easily. It was a hopeless situation, they were going in, and the two tankers quickly admitted defeat. Wilkes puffed his chest up and rolled his eyes as he opened both of the double doors, pushing with both hands.

"Fuck it, daddy's home."

And then promptly stopping dead in his tracks at the sight that awaited him.

Maids.

Not Italica maids, but maid cosplayers in pink, frilly outfits.

With cat tails and ears on, each of their high pitched voices sounding off as one as they bowed in unison.

" _Okaerinasaimase, goshujin-sama!_ "

Kincaid could count on two hands how many times he had ever seen Wilkes utterly stumped. This event added to that number. The loader stood there for a few moments, looking back at the others and a now laughing Shino as he tried to find the words to describe the thoughts going through his mind.

Meanwhile, Kincaid looked around at their new surroundings, mirroring his loader as he took everything in. Bright colors everywhere, happy upbeat music on a constant loop, high pitched voices echoing throughout the room. Kincaid liked maids, he liked the anime they often accompanied.

But this was something else. And, for the first time in his life, the gunner was starting to seriously reconsider his choice in hobbies.

"Bruh, I think I'm gonna catch a case of the beetus."

"Diabeetus!"

Seeing that the Marines were utterly unsure of what to do, Kurokawa and Shino merely shook their heads and began rambling off in Japanese to the overly enthusiastic maids. After some back and forth, the maids giggled and showed the group to their seats.

Of course, the two JSDF females had to almost drag the beleaguered men to their table.

After they took their seats, the group sat in silence for a moment.

"Hey Darian."

"Shutup."

" _Ara ara_ , is someone triggered?"

"Yo, don't even. Like, I swear, I'm gonna get you back for this, Shino."

Kincaid sat there and watched Kurokawa for a few moments. She was doing an amazing job at hiding how uncomfortable she was with the situation.

Kurokawa sighed as she mumbled to Kincaid. "This is my second time coming to one of these."

"That so? What was the occasion for the first time?"

"An old highschool friend used to work at one."

Kincaid suppressed a smirk for a moment as he pressed the topic further. "What made you stop going?"

Kurokawa looked around the cafe, then raised an eyebrow at the corporal. "What do you think?"

"Point taken."

"So, wait a minute." Kincaid looked around confused for a few moments. "Are they going to serve us or?"

Mari sighed as Shino leaned over the table, a devilish grin on her face. "You have to perform the special ritual."

"Special ritual?"

Kurokawa glared at the sergeant before shaking her head. "You... have to call them over a certain way."

Both of the Marines raised their eyebrows as one. "Certain way?"

"Yes, you uh, have to-"

Shino chuckled as she put her hands up not unlike a cat. "You have to do this, and say Nya Nya."

Wilkes promptly facepalmed. "You gotta be fuckin kiddin me."

"Nope! that's how it's done." The sergeant slowly looked over at Wilkes, her grin not dissipating. "And because you're guests here, you gotta do it, Darian."

Wilkes folded his arms and glared at the sergeant. "Fuck, that."

"Well then, I guess we're not eating."

"Have fucking Kincaid do it. He's the nerd."

"Suck my ass, I ain't doing shit."

"Bruh come the hell on. I'm fucking hungry."

"Then you do it."

The loader paused for a few moments, looking around at the rest of the group before grumbling. "Fine." He then promptly looked at Shino. "I'm seriously kicking your ass later."

"You can try, _**Darian**_."

"Stop fuckin call me by my first name. Wait, yo how the hell do you even know my first name?"

"Then stop being a pussy and do it."

Slowly but surely, Wilkes's hands slowly went up into the air and assumed a feline position. Meanwhile, Kincaid snuck his phone out and began to record the proceedings. It was a risk that would no doubt end in him being beaten to the ground.

But it was a risk well worth it.

Wilkes sighed as he uttered the magic words. "Meo- _OOF_." Then promptly received a gut punch from Shino under the table, the sergeant scowling as she grumbled.

"That's not how it's done."

"I swear to christ! NYA! NYA!"

"Nyah?" The words were repeated from across the room as one of the maids turned her head at them. She smiled approached the table with a few menus, a look of utter joy on her face.

A complete farce, no doubt. Thankfully, this one spoke English unlike the others.

"Nyah? How may I be of service, masters?"

Kincaid looked at his menu and scratched his head at the options available. Truth be told, between not understanding the language and the odd assortment of colorful pictures, he was a few minutes away from just ordering nothing at all.

Of course, Kurokawa was once again there to assist him, Shino being too occupied with trying to help Wilkes.

The medic leaned over his shoulder, once again getting themselves very close to one another.

"So? See anything you'd want?"

"Uh, no. I don't have any damn idea what to get." Suddenly Kincaid put the menu down and smirked. "You know what? You pick, surprise me. I am a guest in your country, after all."

"You sure about that?"

"Try me."

Kurokawa smiled and nodded. "Very well Jasper, but if I hear you complain-"

"What?"

The medic paused for a moment, either she wasn't very witty, or she simply hadn't expected such a rapid response. "I'll uh, chastise you."

"Oh shit, I'm spooked."

Mari gave the corporal a playful nudge before she began talking to the maid in Japanese, occasionally glancing over at Kincaid to reinforce whatever it was she was saying.

She was definitely scheming something.

As the maid bowed and went off to fetch god knew what, Kincaid took the time to text Benitez. It had been a while since everyone had parted ways, no doubt driver had something of interest to say.

 _Me: Bro you good?_

A few minutes passed _._

 _Little John: Fucking kill me, if I have to watch Rory come out in another fucking dress._

 _Me: ;) Ooh shit._

 _Little John: Seriously suck my dick through a garden hose pendejo. Anyways, hows shit on your end?_

 _Kincaid grinned as he sent another message, attaching the video of Wilkes to it._

 _Me: See for yourself._

Unlike before, this message had garnered a much faster response.

 _Little John: :O HOLY SHIT._

 _Me: Right? Yo keep that shit hush hush._

 _Little John: Uh yeah he'll fucking kill you if he sees this. Anyways how's the date ;)?_

 _Me: Well besides being stuck in diabeetus land, not too bad I guess._

 _Little John: Word. Just remember what we told you._

 _Me: Yeah yeah._

 _Little John: FUCK I gotta go. Fucking Tuka almost got hit by a car._

 _Me: WTF? HOW? EVERYONE OKAY?  
_

 _Little John: Dragon on a billboard. Poor girl freaked the hell out, everything's good now. We're all fine, TTYL.  
_

"Texting while hanging out? Didn't your mother ever teach you manners, Jasper?" Kincaid felt a weight on his shoulder as Kurokawa leaned against him, her eyes trying to stare at his cellphone screen. As Kincaid looked over at the now red faced medic, he smirked before clicking his phone off.

Paying careful attention to make sure she didn't get a glimpse of his custom wallpaper.

"And didn't yours ever teach you about privacy?"

The medic merely scoffed before folding her arms, trying her best to regain her composure as well as her control of the situation. "W-well, who exactly do you need to be talking to right now?"

Kincaid gave a goofy smile. "Ah you know, just one of my many girlfriends back home."

"Oh, absolutely. Because that's not a lie."

"Oh? And you know this to be true how?" Kincaid's smile didn't dissipate, he had Mari on the ropes, and he knew it.

 _Pretty cute when you're flustered. Where's the big bad bossy medic now?_

Much to Kurokawa's visible relief, the exchange ground to a halt as the English speaking maid from before returned.

This time, however, she wasn't alone. Behind her, what could be best described as a horde of maids were tagging along, and then proceeded to surround the table the group was in.

There wasn't any food with them. No, they had brought something else entirely.

 _Cat ears._

"What the hell is this all about?" Wilkes looked at a now grinning Shino as the cat ears were placed, with some effort, atop his bucket hat.

"This is where the magic starts Darian. Welcome to Japan."

One by one each of the troops had the cat ears placed on their heads, Kincaid and Kurokawa looking just as embarrassed as the loader. This was only the beginning, however, as soon even more maids arrived. This time they had brought the food.

Food that was way too dolled up.

In fact, it looked more like Dr. Seuss himself had puked out an entire series worth of whimsical food stuffs. The banquet was arranged on large silver trays, and as they were placed down on the table, the Marines almost facepalmed when they got a good look at everything.

Cupcakes, pancakes, waffles, beer, juice, chocolate. It was like the Marines themselves had been given free reign to just throw whatever they wanted onto a plate and have at it. It wasn't so much the food itself however, but the way it was presented.

Bright colors, heart shaped designs, an over abundance of sprinkles and cuteness on things that really didn't need them. As the Marines' eyes wandered around the various food stuffs, one thing in particular caught their eyes.

Two omelettes were set up in key spots, no doubt in an effort to stick out. As the Marines got a closer look, they soon noticed why. The Marine Corps Eagle, Globe and Anchor adorned each, drawn in ketchup. Next to them, Japanese cherry blossoms jutted out in odd angles, the official emblem of the JSDF.

It was symbol of the two nation's working side by side.

The group looked up back to the maids, who were now joined by what looked like chefs, and a regularly dressed middle aged woman, who might as well be the cafe's manager. They all bowed in unison as their choir of voices broke the silence, calling the attention of the other patrons.

"Thank you all for service to Japan, and helping us during our time of need. Both to our masters and friends from the U.S. Marines, and our mistresses from our beloved Self Defense Force. _Arigatou gozaimasu!_ "

Before either of the Marines could say anything, the English speaking maid took a step forward and bowed again. "At first we weren't sure whether you were the same people we had seen on TV or not." She then smiled and gestured towards the two Japanese soldiers. "But when the mistresses confirmed you were, well... We knew we had to set out a feast fit for heroes."

Kincaid had went to voice his thanks before Wilkes promptly cut him off, the loader smiling as he nodded. "Ya'll don't have to thank us for nothin. We're just doing our jobs, you know?"

"Jobs or not, we are still thankful."

"Well, appreciate it."

"Aww, so the beast is capable of kindness!" Shino reached over and tried to play with Wilkes's cat ears, promptly receiving a smack on her hand and a glare in response.

"Naw, don't think I forgot. You're still in trouble."

As the pair went back to teasing each other, the rest of the maids gave one more bow before tending to other customers.

"Well shit, let's dig in." Wilkes promptly reached over to start eating when Kincaid glared at him, forcing the loader to give pause.

"Hey, not so fast dumbass." He then looked at the two Japanese soldiers and smiled. "Isn't there something we gotta say before we eat?"

Both of the women put their hands together, gesturing for the two Marines to do the same. "Okay, now say it as we say it okay?"

"Right."

" _Itadakimasu._ "

"It-ah-da-kee fuck it." Wilkes shook his head and started digging in, Kincaid merely shaking his head in embarrassment before doing the same. With that, the group started eating. Falling into casual conversation all the while.

"Man, I ain't seen a lopsided feast like this in a while."

"Oh? You've been to a maid cafe before, Darian?" Shino raised an eyebrow before scowling as Wilkes plucked some egg off her plate.

"Hell naw, shit reminds me of uh." He snapped his fingers and looked up at the ceiling as he tried to remember. "Shit, yo Jasper what was that shit we did after the Crucible?"

Kincaid finished taking a sip of his beer before raising an eyebrow. "The Warrior's Feast?"

"Yeah, that shit."

Kurokawa cocked her head to the side, Shino doing the same as they repeated the words. "Warriors Feast?"

"Yeah. Towards the end of bootcamp we go through this thing called the Crucible. Fifty four hours of sleep deprivation and non stop bullshit."

"Jesus, Jasper. What for?" Kurokawa paused from taking small bites, a look of utter confusion on her face.

"Eh, Marine Corps, you know? Anyways after that's all said and done, they march you back to mainside and to the EGA ceremony." Kincaid paused as he reflected on that morning, one of the proudest days of his entire life, second only to returning from Afghanistan. He promptly dispelled the memory from his mind before taking another sip from his beer and continuing.

"Anyways, they give you your EGA-"

"EGA?"

"Eagle, globe and anchor. The Corps's symbol. Anyways, you get your EGA and they take you to the chow hall. After that? You get this big ass feast of whatever the hell you want." Kincaid chuckled before shaking his head. "Man, we had guys sick for the entire day. Too much food, too little time."

Kurokawa merely giggled in response. "Oh of course, wouldn't be American without a big feast now, would it?"

"Hurr hurr."

As Kincaid went back to eating, he noticed something coming at him out of the corner of his eye. Whatever it was had Shino chuckling, and no sooner had the corporal looked over, he shook his head.

"Say, Jasper?"

 _So, anime wasn't fucking kidding huh?_

Kurokawa held a piece of egg from the end of her fork and looked at Kincaid with a nervous look. "You can try some of my food, if you want."

"Nah, it's alright. Thanks though."

"Really? It's pretty good."

"Nah that's okay."

"But I insist." Mari's face twisted into an expression of pleading, she was giving him the puppy dog treatment.

The corporal merely sighed before smiling. "Alright, you win."

The medic closed her eyes and smiled as well. "Say 'aaah'."

Kincaid mirrored the sound as he ate the egg off the end of the fork, staring into Mari's eyes as he did so. As the medic retracted her hand, he chuckled.

"Alright, I stand corrected. Pretty damn good."

Before she could respond, the sound of Wilkes having food shoved into his mouth cut her off. Evidently, Shino had tried to do the same thing with Wilkes, only skipping the pleasantries and moving straight to the action.

With a whole cupcake.

"What the hell?!" Wilkes smacked his chest before looking at the sergeant with wide eyes. "Shit you tryin to kill me?"

"No, but you wouldn't respond."

"But you didn't even say anything!"

"I had the food right at your face, don't give me that bullcrap."

Kincaid raised an eyebrow before leaning back in his chair. "Well to be fair, I didn't hear anything."

Shino shot a dagger like glance at this statement. "Can it, snake boy. You were too busy making googly eyes with Mari."

The medic promptly coughed in response, giving Shino an incredulous look. "We were not!"

"Sure you weren't."

Kincaid and Wilkes merely sat there and exchanged amused looks as the two women started yapping at each other. This went on for a few minutes until finally, a high pitched voice cut through the room over a speaker, and drowned them out.

As the group looked towards the source of the sound, they froze as they watched one of the maids get up on a stage at the end of the room, with a microphone.

"Now, for our special guests, we will give a performance free of charge!" One by one, the rest of the maids filed onto the stage and started putting their hands up into cat poses as a song began to play.

* * *

 **Nyan Nyan Cafe's Album of...not so Awesome**

 **Track 25: Nyan Cat Theme Song**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

Both of the Marines' jaws promptly dropped at the sight, the two Japanese soldiers merely sighing. They hadn't asked for this.

"Oh you gotta be fucking kidding..."

"Kill me, just fucking kill me now."

* * *

 _Meanwhile..._

 **SHIBUYA SHOPPING DISTRICT**

"Your highness? Everything alright?"

"Ah yes."

"Well then, come on out. Let's see what you got."

Aldritch folded his arms, his gaze fixated on the curtained changing booth as he continued to wait. Truth be told, his nerves were still wracked from having to help her with the unfortunate incident earlier. He had never been in such situation before, helping a woman put a bra on.

Or take it off, for that matter.

It was his first time ever seeing a woman exposed like that, a terrible secret he wouldn't dare share with anyone. To be a virgin at the age of twenty three, especially in the Marine Corps, wasn't exactly something to be proud of.

All things considered, he'd be the laughing stock of his entire platoon if they found out, or worse, the entire MEU.

He was fairly certain Tomita could see it from a mile away, though. Their general dispositions after helping their respective royal were clearly worlds apart, him being all stiff and confused, while the sergeant calmly smiled like the troop he is.

"No worries, sir. Your secret is safe with me." Was all the chuckling sergeant said as they continued to wait, the officer merely nodding with a nervous thumbs up.

"How could you tell?"

"No offense sir, but it's kind of obvious. You looked absolutely lost."

"Right, well..."

Aldritch's train of thought was interrupted as the dark red curtain slowly slid open.

"So, how do I look?" Piña walked out of the booth with hands behind her back, her gaze nervously pointed the ground. The lieutenant's eyes went wide for a moment, before he shook off the awe. Inoue really knew how to dress a woman.

The princess was garbed in a tightly fit purple dress, which accentuated the curves around her waist, and went down up to her knees. Black nylon leggings clothed her legs, and to top the look off, the attendant had chosen a black winter jacket to accompany her brown rider boots.

"It looks good on you. Really good!" Aldritch put a finger under his chin as he thought to himself. "But, uh.. I think it could use a little something."

He quickly glanced around the store before finally spotting some scarves hanging on a nearby rack. After a few seconds of searching, he grabbed a thickly woven red scarf, and made his way back over to the still nervous princess.

"Alright let's see here." He stepped up to her bent the scarf in the middle, then wrapped it around her neck and fed one end into the other's loop. "Now that's more like it."

"It looks good?"

"You kidding? You look great, your highness."

"I do?"

"See for yourself!"

Aldritch pointed to one of the nearby mirrors, and Piña promptly made her way over to give herself a quick look. After doing a spin, and flourishing it with a smile, she grinned from ear to ear.

"These fabrics feel wonderful! Do I look like one of the women from this world? Is this a fashionable outfit?"

"Absolutely, ma'am." Aldritch paused to look over at Tomita. "Say, sergeant, what do you-" The lieutenant paused before rolling his eyes. Tomita had been leading Bozes out, a raised eyebrow on his face as he tried to instil the confidence in her that she looked just fine.

"Pretty good." He folded his arms with pride and nudged Bozes forward. "How about her?"

Unlike Piña, it wasn't Inoue who had chosen Bozes's outfit. Rather, it had been Tomita himself, and it showed in the choice in garb. 'Casual' was the best way to describe it; a yellow and black plaid shirt over some simple jeans, and black Uggs.

The two royals exchanged curious looks as they gave each other a full examination. They eyed each others outfits in thorough detail, checking the fabrics and general designs before giving reviews befitting their status.

"Well Bozes, it looks... how do I put this... Quaint?"

"Quaint?"

"Quite so. Its a simple outfit, if anything. Affordable, I take it?"

Bozes's eyes began to narrow as she glared at the now chuckling princess. "Well, your majesty, simplicity has an elegance all of its own. You look very western, princess, in those colors." She gasped and brought a hand to her mouth in jesting shock. "Are you, perhaps, trying to court an Elbian noble? I heard the Fat Prince is still single."

"What? That feast loving ball of lard? I'd never!"

"Well your majesty, it is as the saying goes. If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then surely it must be."

"Are you calling me a duck?"

"Oh, heavens no, your highness! But you do look quite Elbian in that purple."

Tomita and Aldritch exchanged exasperated looks before stepping between the girls. As it turned out, no matter what world they were from, women would always be critical of one another.

"Okay ladies, that's enough." Aldritch sighed and shook his head. "Do you like your outfits?"

A pair of huffs.

"Right then, lets pay for this and head out. We still got plenty more to do."

Piña nodded before glaring one last time at Bozes. "Very well. Do lead on, Aldritch. Perhaps we might find some more... casual outfits along the way?"

Bozes looked out from behind Tomita and grinned. "Or maybe the garb from other kingdoms?"

"Ladies, please!"

Some things never change.

 **XXXXXXX**

Thankfully, the group's next stop was a relatively short distance away.

By SUV, of course.

Unlike the other groups, royalty rated better methods of transportation. They were the most important guests, after all.

"So, Tomita, where exactly are we?"

"Arisugawa-no-miya Memorial Park. The library's built on the other side, and they don't let cars drive through. We might as well walk and enjoy the sights." The sergeant looked back at the two royals. "That sound good, ladies?"

The two girls, however, were too distracted to pay attention. Their eyes shifted every which way as they gazed up at the trees, and over at the large pond in the center of the park.

"Sounds like a yes," the lieutenant chuckled before getting Piña's attention. "Well, let's go, then."

With that, the group began to make their way through the heavily wooded park. Even Aldritch had to admit, it was definitely something else. The brown and golden yellow leaves clashed together as birds flew across the sky, forming a spectacular display of colors over the winding paths. A few Japanese styled archways were scattered along the roads, their meaning just as foreign to him as Piña's home. It was almost surreal, as if the city had been removed from existence.

Every so often the group would pass by an elderly couple, or the occasional odd fitness junkie out for a brisk jog. Piña eyed them with curiosity, then looked up at the officer.

"Lieutenant?"

The man looked over at the princess as she tugged on his sleeve, another jogger running by them and calling her attention. "What is that woman running for?"

"Well, just because."

"Just because? It's such a nice day here, what is the rush?"

"Some people have different methods of enjoying the outdoors. Some like to run and stay active while enjoying a day such as this. I do it all the time back home."

"Really? What for?"

"Staying in shape. Running does wonders to your body."

Aldritch hadn't noticed at first, but Bozes and Tomita had lagged behind, lost deep in conversation as the sergeant showed the knight his home.

"Lieutenant?"

The tank commander returned his attention to Piña as she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You seem quiet. Is something wrong?"

He shook his head and sighed. "Nah, just enjoying this place. It's really something else, huh? Definitely don't have anything like this back home."

"I can definitely say the same. A park like this, in the middle of a city? Preposterous! And even if there was, it certainly wouldn't be open to the general public."

"Well, we have a different way of doing things here. Most cities around the world have open parks, though I've never seen one like this."

"Like this?"

"Yeah. This one looks... natural, I guess. Parks back home are usually very open, with a few plants and trees scattered around. Even those more heavily wooded look arranged. You can tell someone planted those trees. Here, though..."

The princess looked around again, quickly grasping what he meant. Indeed, the park didn't look man-made at all, save for the rock adorned embankments and guard rails along the pond's edge.

"I see. But why are they open? Why would commoners want to visit this place?"

"We believe in equality, princess. Being of high birth is irrelevant these days. To us, everyone is born equal, and should have the same opportunities to enjoy life."

The princess paused before cocking her head to the side, not quite grasping what he just said. "What do you mean?"

Aldritch dropped his shoulders and sighed. New clothes or not, the princess still belonged to another world. "Well, the concept of royalty more or less doesn't exist in our world anymore. At least, not how it does in the Empire. Many countries, including my own, did away with that system a long time ago."

"Your country did?" she asked with an incredulous look. "Why?"

He looked down at her and straight into her eyes. "There's no checks and balances with that system; nobody to make sure the people in power didn't abuse their position. When you give all the power to one person and their family, well, everyone else doesn't get to have a say in things anymore."

Piña was utterly confused. This idea was just as alien to her as the coalition itself. "But what gives the commoners the right to have a say in things? How do peasants know how to rule a country?"

Aldritch furred his brow and shook his head. "You'd be surprised, your highness. Being common does not mean being incompetent, let alone being ignorant, and being of higher birth doesn't make you better, smarter, or more capable than anybody else. When a bad king rises to power, and the 'peasants' are unhappy, they will find the strength to change things. And so, we did."

The princess was lost for words. Was this city the result of a peasant uprising? The Marines were led by commoners? As she took a moment to reflect on it, the lieutenant's eyes pierced hers once again. "For the record, Princess Piña, never underestimate the common men. They have far more power than you think, and you don't want it against you."

With that, the two fell silent as they continued to walk.

Aldritch found himself glancing her way a few times, noting how distraught she had become. He wondered, for a moment, if he had gone too far. The concept of democracy, as understood by modern society, was unheard of in medieval times, and no wonder it shook her so hard.

 _Wait until you hear of the Revolutionary War,_ he thought. _Or the French Revolution. Boy, that'll sure be something._

The four kept walking along the narrow path, which led them into a wider, tarmac road. Up ahead, the library towered above the trees, it's grey walls and rows of windows marking the only real sign of civilisation within the lush park. A few cyclists could be seen riding along the road, their vehicles amazing the royals to no end.

Before Piña could ask Aldritch about them, Tomita walked up to the pair and called their attention.

"Well, here we are, the Metropolitan Library."

"They built the library inside the park?" Bozes asked with raised eyebrows. "Why?"

"City noises annoy the readers. I guess they wanted a silent place to build it, away from cars and shops."

"That's... quite ingenious, actually," the lieutenant replied. "We could use one of these in Boston."

As the group arrived at the library, the royals were awestruck by it's elegant simplicity. The tall glass windows around the doors, even after seeing hundreds of them, still amazed the two girls.

The automated doors didn't help, either, Piña quickly wrapping herself on Aldritch's arm and muttering something about ghosts.

The officer merely laughed it off as they all entered, taking note of the innumerable book cases and dual flight of stairs before him. In between the two, a two middle aged women sat behind a reception desk, their eyes fixed on their computers as they typed away.

"Wait here," Tomita called from behind him, then walking up to the front of the group. "I'll get the librarians to give us a hand, then we can get started."

As he walked off, Aldritch glanced at Piña one last time, her arms still wrapped around his as she took on the sights. He shook his head and closed his eyes.

 _I really hope I know what I'm doing._

* * *

 **1300 HOURS, SOMEWHERE IN TOKYO  
**

After what had seemed like an eternity, passing through some more busy streets and stopping by some more interesting locales, Kincaid and Wilkes found themselves waiting outside a public restroom for their Japanese companions. Truth be told, the two Marines didn't mind the stop. It gave them time to catch their breaths.

As well as recollect their wits. Between trying to muscle their way through crowds, and ignoring the frequent stares, the pair found themselves feeling almost as alien in Japan as they did in the Special Region.

"Bruh, I'm still debating which is weirder, Japan, or fuckin fantasy land."

"You and I both, bro. This is coming from someone who wanted to visit this place."

"True. I mean, don't get me wrong yo, these people are wild. Like, I fucks with it."

"But?"

"Maann, even I got limits, yo."

Kincaid shook his head as he lit a cigarette, the first he'd had in a while. Evidently, smoking was bad for him, and Mari had made it a habit to constantly remind him whenever he lit one up. Wilkes, on the other hand, didn't have the same problem. In fact, Shino had actually shared one or two of his cigarettes, more out of experimenting than anything else.

That, or trying to figure out what made Wilkes tick.

Before the gunner put his pack away, he instinctively passed it over to his crew mate. The loader was well known for smoking just as much as any Marine, he just never seemed to smoke from his own packs.

A bum, or simply forgetful, none of the other Marines were sure.

Kincaid expelled a cloud of smoke before leaning against a nearby wall, looking up at the sky for a few moments as he watched it fly.

"Well, either way, sure is nice to be back for a little bit, huh?"

"Preach, man. fuckin preach." Wilkes took up a spot next to his gunner, looking around for a few minutes before sighing. "Feels like a fuckin cock tease, though, don't it?"

"Yeah, I was thinking that from the jump. It's like... a taste of freedom right before we get shoved back in." Kincaid paused to take another drag, exhaling the smoke through his nose. "Just how it be, sometimes."

"Word."

The pair stood there for a few moments before Kincaid nudged Wilkes in the side. "So. Shino, huh? ya'll been getting along pretty well." His face twisted into a devilish grin. "I'm thinking you're actually starting to like her, man."

"Bruh, kiss my ass. She's cool people, alright?"

"Now why the hell does that sound familiar?" Kincaid put a finger under his chin. "Hmm... oh yeah! I said the same damn thing about Aurea. But, oh no, I'm the one being a dork. Bro you're drunk in loooove."

Wilkes glared before giving him a jab in the arm, which only prompted a laugh from the now very amused gunner. "Man, whatever. You do you, aight? I'm gonna do me."

"Oh, I know you will. I better not hear whatever it is you two wind up doing tonight, though."

The loader merely chuckled in response. "Oh, naw. I'm gonna make sure you hear all of it. Besides, don't try to keep the fire off your ass. You and fuckin Kuro-wawa over there playing Disney romance deep throat addition with food."

"Like that cupcake? And its KuroKAWA."

"Yeah? Kuro-kuh-Kiss my black ass."

The pair laughed for a few moments before Kincaid groaned and looked at his watch. "Jesus, what the hell is takin em so long?"

"Bruh, they're having girl talk."

"In a public fucking restroom?"

Wilkes put his hands up into the air and gave him an incredulous look. "Nigga, like chicks ain't done weird shit before."

"Touche.."

 **XXXXXXX**

Kurokawa paused for a moment, looking into the mirror as she fixed her hair for a third time, making sure she looked as freshened up as possible.

"Relax. You look fine, Mari." Shino chuckled as she stood next to her companion. Unlike her, she was making sure she was looking presentable in other areas. The ones she knew someone like Wilkes would be looking at the most.

The medic shook her head and sighed. "Well that's easy for you to say, miss I'm attracted to a gorilla man."

"What's wrong with a gorilla man? Mari they're Marines, they're both oversized apes, all things considered." The sergeant chuckled. "It's awesome though, isn't it? I mean, I've always been wanting to chase after a special forces guy, but you know what they say. 'Any port in a storm'."

Shino did one last look over, making sure her jacket was unbuttoned just right. "Marines are the next best thing, after all. Especially tankers." The sergeant giggled. "Oh, we're terrible, aren't we? You've heard the rumors, right? The naughty ones?"

Kurokawa rolled her eyes. "Your lack of grace amazes me. You might as well be one of them."

"Maybe in another life I was. That'd be fine by me."

"Whatever. Besides, I'm not chasing after Jasper."

"Oh, you're not?" Shino held her hand out as she acted out holding a spoon. "Kincaid-kun, say aah."

The medic's faced turned red as a beet. "T-that was nothing! You did the same thing."

"Ara ara, Kincaid-kun! You musn't smoke! Tsk, tsk. How will you ever be able to meet my parents?"

"S-stop that! I'm just being mindful!"

Shino laughed as she gave Kurokawa a smack on the back. "I'm just pulling your leg, you really oughta lighten up. They're Americans. If you want to get closer to one," she paused as she leaned in close, "you gotta learn what makes them tick, which isn't too hard."

Kurokawa scoffed as she folded her arms. "Listen, we're friends. Nothing more."

"You keep telling yourself that. As for me, I have a gorilla man to make mine." Shino cracked her knuckles with a smile. "I'm claiming him tonight. Or he can claim me, either works."

"You can't be serious. You don't know anything about him."

"I don't need to. Dating is done much differently in America. Did you know most Americans often have sex after their first date? It's normal for them."

Kurokawa rubbed for head in frustration. "You're just as bad as they are. Are you even listening to yourself? It's disgusting."

"I am, but disgusting or not, at least I'm honest with myself." Shino rolled her eyes. "Listen, Mari, you can keep sticking to the old way of doing things if you want. I didn't get this leave to just go on another boring Japanese date. Live a little! After all, once we go back, who knows what'll happen."

As the sergeant made her way to the door she paused and looked back at Kurokawa with a shrug. "That, or you can let the snake maid beat you. Your choice. But just remember, she's on his phone background."

Kurokawa stomped her foot in irritation. "How do you know that!?"

Shino smiled coyly, now she was just having fun with the irritated medic. "Oh, Darian told me when we were outside Risa's last night."

"WHAT!? I warned him about her!"

"Okay? He's a Marine, they're block heads. Geez, Mari. You've got a lot to learn. But don't worry." Shino turned around and folded her arms with pride. "I got your back. Listen to me, and you'll have him eating out of the palm of your hand in no time."

She then extended a hand. "So?"

Kurokawa stared for a moment. Everything Shino said was right, and she knew it. She just wanted to get to know the man better, maybe even help him with his problems. She saw the terror in his eyes when he woke up from the night terror, heard him mumbling in his sleep back at Risa's.

He needed her, and she wasn't about to let him chase after some creature because of his fantasies. There was nothing that thing could do that would benefit him in any way.

And she would never be able to come through the other side of the gate.

"Fine, you win." Kurokawa sighed. "Let's go."

"Atta girl! Now first thing you gotta do? Show him you mean business, just watch what I do with Wilkes."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Geez, you two done playin dress up?" Wilkes rolled his eyes as the two Japanese soldiers came out. No sooner had he said this, Shino rolled her eyes and scoffed.

"Maybe. You two done confessing to each other out here?" The sergeant shook her head with a smile. "We can give you more alone time, if you want."

Wilkes glared as he threw his cigarette butt away, Kinaid merely standing there aloof. "Hell naw, don't project your fantasies onto us. Turning into Piña now?"

Shino poked her tongue out, then promptly held onto Wilkes's arm and started to lead him along. "Anyways enough on all that. Time's a wastin. Let's go!"

Wilkes shook his head, deciding to bear with it and follow the overly enthusiastic sergeant. As the pair began to move up, Kincaid looked at Mari with a confused look. "Well, that's bizarre."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he's never been one for doing shit like that. He's too wild and free for that kinda thing. Eh, maybe he's just afraid she'll woop his ass."

"Maybe."

"Yeah."

Silence.

"Well, let's go."

As Kincaid started to walk after the pair, he felt something poke next to his chest, and loop around his arm. Sure enough, the medic had caught up with him, and was now attempting to mirror the same thing Shino had done.

Textbook Shino. Real fuckin clever.

"Uh, Jasper? Here in Japan we uh... We do this sort of thing when we're out with friends."

"That so?" Kincaid chuckled. "Sometimes do the same thing back home. Cept over there, people automatically assume it's two people on a date. Usually they're right, too."

As the pair began to catch up to the others, Kurokawa's face began to turn red. "Oh, well that's bizarre! I mean, good thing this isn't America. I mean, then they'd assume... we were on a date, you know? I mean, not that I'm saying America is bad or anything."

Kincaid shook his head with a smile. "You're awfully nervous Mari. You good? We don't have to do this."

"Oh, no! This is fine! I mean, you're not from here, so this might be awkward for you. If you don't want to, we do-"

"If I minded this, I would've said something."

The sergeant paused and stared. She honestly hadn't been expecting that response. It didn't take away from the warm feeling slowly growing on her.

"I don't mind this at all, Mari. It's nice to be normal for a bit, you know? No military, Just being Jasper, not Corporal Kincaid the Marine tanker."

"Really? Is it that bad? In the Marines, that is?"

Kincaid sighed as he shook his head. "This job... It takes a lot out of you. Physically..." He paused as his face went grim for a moment. "Mentally... Feels like I've been doing this forever. Shit, I can't even remember what the feeling of not being tied down to the service is like."

 _This is my chance, time to start proving to him I care._

Mari strengthened her resolve and tightened her grip slightly, adjusting herself to get closer as they walked arm in arm. "Well, regardless. You're strong for doing what you do, Jasper. I can't even imagine being stuck in one of those things. I don't know how you do it."

"Yeah, me neither, sometimes. It's all about the crew, you know?" He smiled as he started thinking about being back inside his tank. "You're controlling a seventy ton behemoth; one of the best ones, too. The Abrams is a mean girl. Our girl. She only struts her stuff if you grab her by the waist and take her onto the dance floor by force. Thing is, you gotta share her with three other guys."

She started to smile as she let him continue. She enjoyed seeing this side of him. "They rely on you, and you rely on them. There's nothing like it, Mari. And, as tough as it is, that sense of power? The brotherhood?"

Kincaid looked over at her. "I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. But, it's been a long time. Just as much as we demand a lot out of our tanks, they demand a lot out of us. It's a rough business, but it's our business."

"I bet your father must be proud, seeing you turn out the way you have. I could see it in his eyes. He served too didn't he?"

He couldn't help but smile as his pride took hold once more. "Sure did. Twenty years; Combat engineer."

"So its true what they say. Like father, like son."

"Yeah, pops and I might as well be one and the same at this point." Kincaid shook his head with a smile. "You should've seen me when I was younger. I'd try on his gear and march around the house. To me, being like him would be a dream come true, you know? He was my hero, inspiration."

"I take it he still is."

"Yeah, still is. But I tell you what, I'm probably only half the Marine he is."

The medic scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, give yourself some more credit, Jasper. I'm sure you're every bit the Marine he was." Her face began to twist into a warm smile. "I'm sure he never got to fight dragons."

"Well, that thing's still alive." Kincaid's expression began to change into one of grim determination as he pictured the beast once more. In his mind, he still had a score to settle.

It did knock him out, after all.

"Mark my works, Mari. I'll be the one to kill it. And when I do, I'm gonna yank something off it as a war trophy." He paused and shook his head with a smile. "Well, maybe a few things. I'm sure the family will want souvenirs."

Kurokawa shook her head and sighed. "Oh, I'm sure you will, Mister big game hunter. You and the rest of your crew of dragon slaying knights." Suddenly her tone changed as she tried her best to look regal. "Atop your glorious iron chariots!"

"Oh, bite me." Kincaid stuck his tongue out, getting a playful push in response.

Before the two could continue their conversation, Shino's voice yelled out as she pointed to a building across the street. "Guys, Look!"

As Kincaid and Kurokawa caught up, they took a look at the building Shino was pointing at. It was an odd little place, a hole in the wall more than anything, but it was the artwork and the signs adorning the front that made the Marines shake their heads.

Karaoke.

"Listen, we'll go in, but if we sing, the building might explode. Ya mean?" Wilkes shook his head and looked over at Kincaid. "Shit, bruh, it's just like your anime. Next we'll stop for juice boxes and those uh...creeps?"

"Crepes?"

"Yeah creepies."

Kincaid looked at Kurokawa and shook his head. "Do we have to? I mea-"

"Nope! We're going! Come on Shino!"

And just like that, the Marines were dragged into yet another odd establishment.

 **XXXXXXX**

Unlike the maid cafe, the Karaoke facility was a much more laid back experience thus far. Quiet, nothing too fancy.

No creepy fake maids.

Hell, the group could even order beer to their room. Which, of course, everyone did as soon as they had signed one out.

Once the group got settled into their room, the long and nerve wracking process of deciding who would be brave enough to go first began. The two Marines were content to simply relax in the comfortable leather couches, their first chance to take a load off their feet in god knew how long.

"Darian."

"What?"

"You get to go first."

Wilkes had been lounging without his bucket hat on, sipping on his beer and being content to be as lazy as possible. So, naturally, when Shino had snatched his hat and put it on with a grin, he was anything but amused. The loader glared and as he put his hands up in disbelief.

"Why the hell do I gotta go first?" He paused and started shaking his head. "Oh, I get it, cause I'm black. Yeah, yeah, 'put some of that rap on! Let him spit bars' That's some fucked up shit."

Kincaid set his beer down and smirked. Unlike Wilkes, he had taken his thick bomber jacket off, choosing to hang it on a conveniently placed hanger in the corner of the room.

"Dude, you always sing when we're driving. Miss me with that bull shit."

Shino promptly tossed a microphone at Wilkes, the loader catching it right before it could slam into his face. "Well, then, let's hear it! You're up first." She paused for a moment before smiling coyly. "Unless you're gonna puss out.."

"Yo, I'm bout to woop your ass with this microphone."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Bet I won't."

Up till now, Kurokawa had been quiet, choosing to sit next to Kincaid and simply enjoy the time the group was spending together. This back and forth banter was killing her mood, however. The last thing she wanted was watching Wilkes and Shino flirt back and forth in that rough method they had developed.

"Oh, for god's sake, why don't you both go up there? Just suffer together, children."

The irate pair stopped bickering for a moment, considering the medic's words for a few moments before shrugging.

"Fine, but I'm picking the song."

"Aw hell naw! It's gonna be some Japanese shit I won't even be able to pronounce!"

"Only if you force my hand."

"Fine."

As the two made their way over to the modest looking TV in the front of the room, Kincaid looked over at Kurokawa with an amused look. "Geez, look at you, Mother Theresa. That goon never listens to me." The corporal chuckled as he pretended to hold a microphone in front of her. "Tell us! What's your secret!? How do you do it?"

"Oh, shut up. Someone has to keep you lot in check."

"Shit, aye ma'am."

"Hah-hah."

After Wilkes and Shino went back and forth over songs, they finally picked one. Kincaid couldn't look pass the pair to see, but as a familiar tune began to play he quickly shook his head and groaned.

"Oh come on, of all the songs!?"

"Hell yeah, nigga."

"'Hell yeah nigga' nothing! You're gonna butcher it!"

* * *

 **Karaoke Album of Awesome**

 **Track 26: The Cranberries "Linger"**

 **As butchered by Shino and Wilkes**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

Kurokawa noticed Kincaid's distress and cocked her head to the side in curiosity. "What's so special about this song?"

"It's my mom's favorite song."

"Really? I've never heard this before, is it popular back in America?"

Kincaid watched the television with dread as he saw the text start to rise up from the bottom of the screen. "Well it was, back when I was a little boy. My mom used to play it all the time whenever we went out for a drive."

"Oh, have you talked to her since we've been back?"

The text started to get closer to the top of the screen.

"No, I'm going to call her late-" Kincaid was promptly cut off as Shino and Wilkes's high pitched voices started drowning the room in noise.

" _IF YOU, IF YOU COULD RETURN. IF YOU COULD LET IT FAAADE!_ "

As the singing continued, Kincaid and Mari squinted their eyes and held their ears shut.

Perhaps Karaoke wasn't such a smart idea.

" _DO YOU HAVE TO!? DO YOU HAVE TO!? DO YOU HAVE TO LET IT LINGER?!_ "

* * *

 **TOKYO METROPOLITAN LIBRARY**

Aldritch had to hand it to the Japanese. Efficient public transportation, interesting locales, a culture relatively untouched, regardless of technological advancement, and now tablets.

After almost half an hour searching for books, having a library assistant run around aisle after aisle collecting books that were ultimately useless, Tomita suggested an alternative that, up until that point, had completely escaped his mind. He dismissed the assistant and guided the group to the third floor, where another secretary was typing away behind a desk.

He walked up and talked to her for a moment, then signed some papers, and returned to the group with two Ipads in hand, complete with WiFi connection, and directions to a silent reading room they could use in that same floor.

To make things even better, there was no one inside.

Once they made their way into the room, the sergeant closed the door behind them before shaking his head and looking at his watch.

"Alright, it's fourteen-hundred right now. Time isn't exactly on our side, and we got a lot to go over. Sir, any ideas where to begin? I'm, uh... not exactly a teacher."

Aldritch had taken his jacket off, hanging it off the back one of the various chairs around the table. "Well, probably be best to give them a quick rundown on how our governments work?"

"Uh, yeah..." Tomita rubbed his forehead in frustration. "How are going to cover both?" The sergeant began to pace back and forth deep in thought for a few moments. "Ours alone could easily take hours sir."

"You're not kidding."

Meanwhile, Piña and Bozes sat on the opposite side of the table, watching the two military men furrow their brows as they thought of ways to best explain their respective governments. Finally, Aldritch shook his head and picked up one of the tablets.

"Alright, guess we'll start with the concept of Democracy. We're pretty similar in that regard, right? Two birds, one stone?"

"More or less."

"Alright, that'll do." His voice started to fade off as he focused on booting the tablet up. Once he got it up and running, he looked at Piña with a raised eyebrow.

"Okay. Your highness, let's start with your world first. Could you explain, more or less, how your government works? Briefly, if possible?"

The princess thought for a few moments before nodding. "Well, our government is divided into two main bodies. First and foremost, the emperor." she paused, "My father. He is the supreme ruler of the Empire, has the final say on all decisions, and is the commander of all our legions."

Piña paused as she thought further. "Next we have the senate, which is an assembly of representatives from the most influential families in the capital. They don't hold much decisional power, but their influence extends much further than my father's."

Aldritch folded his arms, the basic idea taking shape in his head. "So... how does your government come to decisions, then?"

"It depends on what my father considers important."

"And... what would be considered important?"

"Declarations of war, taxation, deployment of the military, emergencies, things of that nature."

"Alright... Wh-" Before he could continue, the princess looked down at the table and kept on talking.

"For the most part... it's a power struggle. The senate is always at odds with my father."

"I see..." Aldritch raised an eyebrow. "What about the vassal states?"

Piña tilted her head and looked at him inquisitively. "What of them?"

"Don't they have any say in the senate?"

"Why would they? They have their own kings, they simply pay tribute in exchange for protection and independence."

"Independence? From what, the Empire?"

Piña shook her head. "No, from foreign threats. Falmart is a dangerous place; tribes of beastmen and barbarians roam the country side, raiding and pillaging everything in their path. To make matters worse, all forms of dangerous creatures threaten our people."

Both Aldritch and Tomita look confused a the moment. "Falmart?"

"Yes, our continent is known as Falmart." Piña raised an eyebrow. "You didn't know this?"

For the first time, Tomita and Aldritch looked embarrassed. Either the information hadn't trickled down from the brass yet, or nobody had bothered actually asking where the hell they were.

"We, uh... never asked."

The two royals exchanged confused looks before Aldritch took control of the situation once more. "Regardless, if that's the case., why did the Empire knowingly send the vassal states' armies to die at Alnus?"

The princess looked taken aback for a moment. "Come again?"

"You knew it was a hopeless battle." The officer sighed before rubbing his forehead. "Your highness, time and time again we repelled the enemy without a single loss of our own. Why send more meat to the grinder?"

"We didn't have a choice. For all we knew, you came to destroy the continent, and most of our legions were destroyed. All that was left were the allied nations."

"I see..." The men exchanged nods before the lieutenant started swiping on his tablet. Meanwhile, the princess cocked her head to the side in curiosity.

"So... are we all that different, lieutenant?"

Aldritch didn't look up from his screen. "Very." He paused as he looked over at Tomita. "You could say that, indeed, we're worlds apart."

The sergeant facepalmed as the lieutenant went back to looking at his screen.

"Alright... where to start, where to start...?" Aldritch muttered as he began to rub his forehead once more. "Right. Well, I suppose we'll start with our respective senates? That's the closest analogue I can think of." The lieutenant glanced at Tomita. "You want to go first?"

"Sir, all things considered, you probably know more about these things than I do."

"If you say so..."

Aldritch sighed again. He needed to hit the wickets fast and thorough, enough to make this count. Not too much information, but also not too little.

"Right, then." The lieutenant turned his tablet around and pointed at a Wikipedia article expanding the picture big enough for the royals to see. As the pair leaned in, Aldritch began his lesson.

"That building you see in front of you is where our senate is located. In my country it's known as the United States Congress."

The two royals stared at it in awe for a few moments, Piña looked at the screen for a few moments in confusion. "How are you able to get such life like pictures onto..." she paused as she got a good look of the Ipad. "What is that?"

The lieutenant merely shook his head with a smile. "I'll explain it later. Anyway, going back to Congress. It works kind of like your senate... in a way... But the similarities end with what kind of representatives are seated there, and the process with which they're put into power."

The royals merely sat there and let the lieutenant continue with his lesson. "Before I explain Congress further, do you know what a federation is?"

Piña nodded. "Yes, it's when several states pledge vassalage to a single governing body."

"Good. Right, then. My country is a federation, led by a federal government, which is divided by three main powers. We have Congress, the President, and the supreme court. To keep things simple, we'll start with congress."

Aldritch took a deep breath. This was going to be a mouthful. "Our congress has what's known as a bicameral system, consisting of the House of Representatives, and the US Senate. The House of Representatives has representatives from each of our states, according to their population. States with more people living in them have more representatives.

"Meanwhile, the senate has only two representatives from each state, regardless of population. All of them are elected democratically by the common people, who vote for who will represent them. Since these positions are not forever, the votes conducted for these seats occur every couple years. This avoids any one person having power forever."

Piña cocked her head to the side. "People? Women can serve on these seats as well?"

"Absolutely."

The two royals exchanged amazed looks, Aldritch quickly capitalizing on this as he continued.

"In fact, if beastmen were to live in our country, they'd be able to occupy these seats as well, so long as they meet the criteria."

Bozes stammered as Piña simply sat there with her mouth agape. "What? That's preposterous!"

Aldritch merely shook his head. "That's how our system works, ma'am. An equal system of government, for the people, by the people."

The lieutenant glanced at Tomita, cueing him to start talking of his National Diet. "Before we move into how our presidency works, sergeant, would you like to compare your senate to ours?"

The ranger nodded before placing both hands on the table. "Okay, well, our senate is known as the National Diet. We went there yesterday to pick everyone else up. It functions much like Congress, but with one key difference. As opposed to how the American Congress is composed, our representatives are voted for in a proportional manner, at a national level. This means that the our Diet members represent the Japanese people as a whole. Each of our prefectures, which are akin to counties, also has one representative, but for the most part, the Diet acts for the good of the whole country."

He paused and looked at Bozes. "With the same policy of equality."

The Marine looked at Tomita, somewhat impressed. "Not bad, sergeant. I thought you said you weren't good at these sort of things."

"I'm not. I just memorized the Wikipedia page as best I could."

The lieutenant chuckled before returning his attention to the royals. "Now, as for what they do, Congress and the National Diet have more or less the same purpose, which is to pass laws." He paused for a second. "Or Bills, as we call them in America. Basically ,what happens is this. A law project is presented, and the members of Congress vote on it. Since in America we have a President, though, the law has to go through him before it can be approved. But this doesn't mean he has final say."

Aldrtich paused to take a breather, his mind was racing from all the information he had to pass. In fact, he had sat in on operations briefs that were less complex.

Marine to the end.

"Regarding the President, much like your father, he's considered the head of state. However, he's elected by the people, and like I said before, does not have final say on all matters. We have a system known as checks and balances, and like the representatives, he can only stay in power for a limited period of time.

"Essentially, what our president does is manage the political side of the country, and much like your father, he's in charge of the military. However, he cannot declare war."

Piña looked at him intently as she raised an eyebrow. "He can't? Then who does?"

"That decision falls on Congress, which represents the will of the people. And, if the President wants, he can veto said declaration. Still, that does not mean that war won't be declared. It ultimately only delays the process, and make things more complicated for everyone involved."

 _Like the Corps, or anyone else who wears the uniform._

Aldritch shook his head and looked at Tomita. "Does this work the same way in Japan?"

"No, the process starts and ends at the Diet. Our Prime Minister doesn't have veto power, though the Emperor could, technically." His faced changed from one of utmost seriousness to a smile. "But he won't. He's just a figurehead."

Now it was Piña's turn to be shocked. "What? he's just a figurehead?"

"Mhm. Throughout history he only sat there wearing fancy clothes, to be honest." Tomita rolled his eyes as he muttered. "And I'm pretty sure the royal family is inbred as fuck."

The lieutenant held back a laugh before composing himself. "Well, that about covers government. The Supreme Court isn't exactly relevant to us now. They're just the ones that judge people on crimes and whatnot. Do you two have any questions for us?"

Piña didn't know what to say. She turned to Bozes, who simply shrugged, then back at the two men. Finally, she sat up straight, uttering a simple question for everything she had just heard.

"Well, how is this all possible? I don't understand, lieutenant. You told me you used to have a king. What happened to him?"

If ever there was a time for Aldritch to facepalm, this was it. He gave Tomita an exhausted look, the sergeant simply shaking his head in response.

"Sir this is all you, you have the floor."

"Gee, thanks."

The lieutenant turned his attention to the royals and sighed. "Well, it's a long story. I'll try to keep things as simple as possible. Two hundred and forty years ago, we were ruled by another country, known as the Kingdom of Great Britain. We were their colony, a distant land conquered by them centuries before, and isolated from the crown. However, the king insisted on imposing high taxes on us, without giving us a say in their parliament."

He gave himself a second to google the Revolutionary War, then picked a picture from the image board and held it ready.

"Long story short, the common people got angry, and rebelled. Things began getting complicated, and the king sent an invasion force to stop us."

The lieutenant turned his tablet around, showing the two royals the picture on the screen. In it, a line formation of red dressed soldiers marched uphill under a hail of fire, led by drums and banners. A few men could be seen atop the hill, entrenched behind thick earthworks and shooting down at the invaders.

The princess squinted her eyes for a second, then gasped. Much like the Marines, these soldiers carried guns.

"That's a painting of the Battle of Bunker Hill, one of the many battles between us, and the King's 'Redcoats'."

"...How long has your world been fighting like this? With those... weapons?" she asked, memories of Italica coming back to her mind.

Aldritch chuckled. "A long, long time, Princess. And make no mistake, the Kingdom of Great Britain had one of the most powerful armies in the world at the time, and their navy literally ruled the seas. We might as well have been ants, in comparison."

"B-but... how did you win?"

"It was a long war, with many sacrifices on both sides. We forged an alliance with an old enemy, the Kingdom of France, and with their help, we defeated the King's invasion force. Then, with all said and done, we created the government we have now."

"And what happened to the Kingdoms of France and Britain?"

"We're all allies now. We've been so for... about a hundred years?"

"W-what?! How? After such bloodshed, how can you forgive anyone?"

The lieutnenant looked at Tomita and nodded, the sergeant getting up to stand by his side. "We learnt to put the past behind us, your highness. It's better to be friends, than to bottle up hatred."

The sergeant looked at the two royals with a face of determination, it was time to hit the nail on the head. Something that needed to be addressed now or never.

"In fact, Lieutenant Aldritch's country and my own were enemies a few decades ago."

Both the royals almost leaped from their seats. Japan and America? Enemies? It was unbelievable. Ever since their arrival at Italica, they had cooperated like best friends. What sort of war had they fought?

The lieutenant looked over at Tomita with a raised eyebrow, switching to English. "You sure of this, sergeant? That's, well... That's a rough piece of history right there."

"Yes. I'm very sure, sir. I don't let it bother me. I thinks these girls should know the value of change."

"If you insist... Don't hold anything back, Tomita. Lord knows I won't."

"Appreciate it, sir. Let's do this together."

"Alright."

The lieutenant sighed as he stood in front of Piña and Bozes, going back to their language. "Well, there's no easy way to explain this. Your highness, you remember at Italica, when I brought up the birth of tanks during a First World War?"

Piña nodded. "Yes, how could I forget?"

"Well... it was called the First World War for a reason."

"First..? You mean... there was more than one war? The entire world?"

"Yes. And it was much, much worse than the first one." The lieutenant looked over at his fellow man. "I guess we should explain Germany first."

"Yeah."

"Okay. Well, after the first war, the defeated countries were in a disastrous position. All around the world people were starving, and a worldwide economic crisis shattered absolutely everything they had. Even America was shaken by it."

He paused for a moment and rubbed his temple. "Princess, remember what I said earlier? When the people are unhappy, bad things happen, and toxic ideas grow in power. Japan's case was prime among them."

Tomita nodded, he had nothing to hide.

"It was then that another country, known as Germany, was taken over by a brutal dictatorship. So was one of its neighbors, Italy, and Japan was subjugated by the might of its own military." Aldritch looked at Tomita. "Correct?"

"Yes. It wasn't so much of a full on military government, but more along the lines of the Emperor letting the nationalist military rule over him. The two countries the lieutenant mentioned, as well as my own, formed an alliance known as the Axis powers. This alliance empowered them, enough to make them feel like they could do whatever they want." Tomita sighed. "And we did."

"Quite so. In nineteen thirty nine, Germany invaded its eastern neighbor, Poland. But that was only the beginning. Soon, countries like Denmark, Norway, Belgium, and even our ally France fell to their might."

Piña's face twisted into one of worry. "France? But, they were your allies. Didn't you help them fight?"

"Not at first. Britain certainly tried. And failed."

"And what about you?"

Aldritch's face turned into one of regret. "Congress wouldn't allow us to go to war. We tried to send as many supplies as we could, but the Germans intercepted our ships. There were also... other problems." He paused.

 _Russia. Goddamn communists._

Tomita shook his head as he took over. "As for Japan, we weren't exactly friendly to our neighbors, either. We began thinking ourselves superior, and as such, we figured we should be the ones who ruled over them."

He paused, the lieutenant taking the lead again.

"But that wouldn't last for long. Two years later, the two biggest mistakes of the war were committed by the Axis. In June, nineteen forty one, the plan known as Operation Barbarossa was put in effect by Germany. It involved the massive invasion of all countries east of Poland, and this included the mighty Soviet Union, one of the largest and most populated countries of the world." He shook his head before continuing. "It also didn't help that they had an evil dictatorship of their own, one that wasn't quite happy with being invaded."

"Then there was Pearl Harbor," the sergeant interjected.

The girls had been listening to this story the entire time, wondering when the change would come. When would the happy ending arrive? Everything they had heard so far was terrible, to put it bluntly.

But Pearl Harbor meant something. They could see it in the men's eyes. "Pearl Harbor?"

"The Japanese launched a preemptive strike on one of our naval bases, killing thousands of our soldiers and sailors in a matter of minutes. There was no declaration of war, no alerts, nothing. They came from the sky, and started killing people."

"What happened next?"

"Everything went to shit. For everyone involved."

"We declared war on Japan, and Germany declared war on us. The entire world was at war, and we all did terrible, terrible things to one another."

"I- I don't understand. You all seem like strong allies now. What happened?"

Tomita shook his head in shame. "What my country did during the war... is unspeakable. To both our enemies, innocent people... even our own citizens."

"And don't get us started on Germany." Aldritch groaned.

"What could have been so bad? What is so unspeakable?"

The lieutenant merely met her eyes with an icy gaze. "Piña... the Imperial cleansing of the beast people. You know of it, don't you?"

"I..." The princess looked down in shame, Bozes doing the same. "Yes... I know it... happened, sometimes..."

 _And was carried out by my brother..._

Bozes furred her brow at Piña, then turned back to the men in anger. "What's the point of telling us this?"

Tomita leaned forward, his hands on the edge of the table as he looked directly into Bozes's eyes. "Because we did the same thing. All of the axis powers did, and on an industrial level." He focused his staring. "For no. Fucking. Reason. These were humans, Bozes. Human beings who did nothing wrong."

The girls' eyes went wide, his words still bouncing around their heads. "And don't you dare think that just because the Empire does so with beastmen, it makes it right."

With that the sergeant went back to his chair, the officer taking the center stage once more.

"We're... not exactly guiltless, either. After Pearl Harbor, we were very angry, and when Marines get angry... Well, you saw a taste of it at Italica."

"The Marines fought against Japan? Were the original Four Horsemen there?"

"Yeah. We divided our forces, sending the Army to fight Germany, while we Marines and the Navy went after Japan." A small sense of pride began to overcome him as he talked. Horrible war, or not, the Corps proved itself in those islands. "We took the worst Japan threw at us; we lost a lot of men, but we made them pay for each and every one."

Aldritch picked up his tablet and scrolled through it for a few moments before finding a picture.

An M4 Sherman tank, one of the original ones belonging to Second Tank Battalion.

As he showed the picture to the two royals, he couldn't help but chuckle. "Those are the tanks earlier generations of Marines fought in. They weren't as good as what we have now, not even close, but we made them work just as well."

The royals looked at the older tank for a few moments, remembering the Abrams as they compared the two.

"It looks... small."

"It was. And wasn't all that powerful, either. But the tanks at the time weren't like today's."

Piña put the tablet down and looked back up at Aldritch. "So, how does this all end?"

The two men exchanged a quick glance, before the officer continued.

"Princess..." he quickly came up with a witty way to say it. "Do you want to know how to put out a big fire?"

She merely tilted her head to the side.

"You set a much bigger explosion next to it. It sucks away the oxygen, and snuffs the flame."

"I... don't understand."

"Well, that is what we did. First we had to shut down Germany. We liberated France, fighting one of the bloodiest battle of the war. Then, all of our allies pushed into the German border. It would be the Soviets, though, who would claim the prize of taking their capital." He paused. "And razing it to the ground. As for Japan..."

Aldritch paused, struggling to find the words for a few moments before looking at the sergeant.

"Don't sugarcoat it."

"We unleashed one the most destructive weapons ever made by mankind."

Tomita slid his tablet across the table, the two royals promptly grabbing it and staring at the picture with wide eyes.

The picture was in black and white; a gigantic cloud that seemed to engulf the very heavens themselves.

"W-what is this?" Piña's hand began to shake as she looked up from the photo, looking at Aldritch with fear filled eyes.

"We know it as 'the atomic bomb', your highness." He paused once again, trying to come up with a good description of how it works.

"Piña, Bozes..." he brough a hand to his forehead. "Imagine your capital city erased from existence in the blink of an eye, engulfed... in a blinding light that burns everything, and kills everyone for miles around... leaving only a barren wasteland, uninhabitable for centuries."

Silence.

"A-and... you used this... on Japan?"

"Twice."

"W-why? How could you?"

"The war had to end, and Japan wouldn't stop. Ultimately, they were willing to lay down the lives of every man, woman, and child. In the end, those bombs wound up saving more lives, as hard as that might be to believe. Was it justified? I don't know; I like to think it was. But, regardless, the war ended."

It was hard for the two girls to understand it. Such power; the killing, the sheer brutality of it all. It didn't make any sense.

"I... How, though? Tomita, how did you become such close allies with America?"

The men looked at each other for a second, the sergeant taking the lead. "The winning powers of the war created the United Nations, and helped rebuild the countries destroyed by the war. There was a great many of them, too, far too many."

"As for Japan, that was all us, your highness," Aldritch spoke up. "America alone helped them rebuild, put them back on their feet, and would later pledge to stand by their side with the Mutual Defense Treaty."

Piña nodded, recongizing that name from her talks with the ambassador and Japanese diplomats. She didn't known it had been around that long, though.

"In fact, all of the former Axis powers are our allies, now. Together with Britain, France, and a bunch of other nations, we formed NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization." The lieutenant smiled. "In fact, Germany helped us create the Abrams tank, believe it or not."

The princess smiled. If anything, that meant there still was hope for the Empire.

However, she still had one more question.

"But, wait. Lieutenant, alliances are not made just like that. What made all these countries band together?"

Aldritch whistled as he slumped in a nearby chair, taking a quick glance at the clock by the wall. "We'll, uh... have to leave that story for another time. It's... too complicated... fucking Soviet Union," he muttered under his breath.

Things went quiet for a few moments, the lecturing tiring both teachers and students alike. Aldritch yawned as he stretched, then a jingle from Tomita's phone called their attention.

"Well, looks like Itami is outside. He's waiting for us. Guess we're good to head to Hakone."

"Right, then." Aldritch clapped his hands and stood up with a groan. "Alright, ladies, off we go."

Slowly but surely, the group made their way out of the room, and down the various flights of stairs, pausing at the front desk to drop off their tablets before making their way to the entrance.

"Say, Aldritch?"

"Yes, your highness?"

"What happened to Italy?"

"Eh, they just got wrecked mid way through the war. They ended up turning on their dictator, and executed him themselves."

"Oh..."

"Yep. Telling ya, we 'peasants' can do great things."

The group exited the library without much trouble, Piña wrapping herself around the officer once more as they crossed the automated doors. They walked back down the road they came from, bordering the pond before stopping at the sight of two people leaning on the guard rails.

Itami leaned forward and smiled, then walked up to the group with his old looking companion.

"Ah, good to see you, guys," the Japanese officer began, waving a hand at the man beside him. "This is Mister Kanou, the Japanese defense minister. Sir, these are Princess Piña Co lada and Knight Bozes Co Palesti from the Empire, Lieutenant Aldritch of the Marines, and my subordinate, Sergeant Tomita."

The man bowed politely as the two military men gave him a salute, the royals getting a translation from Itami before hastily bowing themselves.

"It is an honour to finally meet our esteemed guests. I hope you are enjoying your visit to our country."

Aldritch gave the royals a rundown of what the minister said, then translated their words. "The princess thanks you for your kind words, sir. They say they are amazed by your country, and look forward to peace with both our nations."

"Good to hear. Tell her that we are all looking forward to the peace negotiations, and that we're thankful for her help in ending this war."

"She says she will do her best, sir."

"I know she will," he said with a smirk."But enough politics, lieutenant Itami told me you came to the library, and taught these girls on our history. I'll assume you had enough for one day."

Aldritch chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck, quickly glancing at Tomita before replying. "That we did, sir."

"Good, good. Anyway, in case you didn't know yet, Public Safety gave us green light to continue as planned. There's a... completely inconspicuous looking SUV waiting for you outside. You better get going."

They exchanged bows and salutes once again before walking off, Aldritch noticing Mr. Kanou was not coming with them.

"Aren't you coming with us, sir?"

"Me? No, I'm heading to the library. I have..." he glanced at the brown paper bag in his hand. "Paperwork to oversee."

After one final wave, the officer walked away, lighting a cigarette as he caught up with Piña. She was walking slower than the others, the reason lost to the young lieutenant. She looked up to him, particularly at the burning piece of paper in his hand.

"I noticed you don't smoke as much as the others."

He puffed a smoke cloud before replying. "Yeah, well... I've never been much of a smoker. I only started when I joined the fleet." He took another drag. "I just... It helps me relax, you know?"

"Relax? Is that opium, then?"

"Oh, no, no, no. That's on a whole other level. This is tobacco."

The princess took a moment to sniff the air as he exhaled the smoke. "Tobacco? Doesn't smell like it. At all."

"Eh, cigarettes are made with very bad quality tobacco, as well as other stuff I'd rather not think about."

"...Can I... have one?"

He looked at the princess with a raised eyebrow. "Smoking... isn't a good habit to have, your highness. There's a reason why I don't do it often."

With that, the two fell into silence, the only noise meeting their ears being birds, and their own footsteps.

"Say, Aldritch, who was that?"

"The Japanese defense minister. Didn't Itami tell you?"

"No... He just said his name, and that he was important. What does that position mean?"

"Oh, he's the commander of the JSDF."

"WHAT?! That man?! Wasn't General Hazama in charge?"

"Hazama? No, he only leads the coalition forces. The Japanese Minister of Defense is in charge of all the JSDF, including the forces not deployed in Falmart."

The princess just stared blankly. She had just met the 'enemy's' supreme commander, and didn't even realize to whom she was talking to.

All things considered, he looked as common as everybody else. Was he elected democratically as well?

The rest of the walk was spent in silence, neither her or Aldrich having the mental energy to say anything. They caught up with the rest outside the park, the SUV waiting with Itami, Tomita and Bozes already in. The pair got on the back seats and closed the door, the officer getting to sit by the window with the princess beside him.

With all said and done, the DS agent started the engine, giving a quick radio call before driving off.

As Aldritch watched the Japanese city pass by his window, he reached into one of his jacket's pockets and pulled out a small pair of headphones with his phone. Now was a good a time as any to get some sleep, and listen to some music while at it.

With a sigh, the lieutenant put the earphones in and leaned against his window. He closed his eyes as music began to play, a fleeting moment of peace before a familiar tug at his sleeve nudged him awake.

Piña.

"Aldritch?" she asked, staring at the device in his ear. What's...?"

"Shh."

The lieutenant promptly took one of his earphones out gently pressed it intoher ear. He then turned back to his phone, and hit the play button again.

* * *

 **Aldritch's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 27: Damon Albarn "Lonely Press Play"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

The lieutenant went back to sleep, leaving Piña to her own devices as she stared out the window.

 _Arrhythmia_  
 _Accepting that you live with uncertainty_  
 _If you're lonely press play_

The song continued to play as she thought back on everything. Her time in Japan so far had made her reflect on so many things, and changed her mind on so much. In a matter of two days, she had received a great responsibility, to both her people, and her own morality.

She would end this war.

She would make the Empire see reason. And, hopefully, one day, her nation may rise to a better future, and grow closer to what Japan and America were like.

 _Di lady Di_  
 _The aspects that you pass on while travelling_  
 _When you're lonely press play_

But, as stressful as it had been, it had also been fun. She looked down at her new clothes, the purples and blacks that caressed her body like no dress ever did. But they were more than that.

They were gifts.

As for the song, she couldn't understand a word of what it said, but relaxed her nonetheless. It was a strange tune, unlike anything she'd ever heard in her father's court. Gone was the complex arrangement of notes, or large number of instruments she was used to, replaced with a simple tune, a soothing male voice, and a distinct, noticeable bass. And yet, it still sounded beautiful.

It wouldn't take long before the Princess began drifting off as well, eyelids drooping as the tune brought forth the sleepiness. Unfortunately, the short headphone's cord didn't give much room to manoeuvre. So, without many options, she leaned on the most comfortable thing she could think of.

 _'Cause you're not resolved in your heart_  
 _You're waiting for me_

Aldritch's shoulder.

* * *

 **1900 HOURS HAKONE ONSEN  
**

As planned before, once six o clock had rolled in, and the all clear was given by Public Safety, each of the various groups were picked up by one the totally inconspicuous black DS SUVs.

True to their word, the DS agents had been ghosting the visitors from the moment they left Risa's apartment. How they did so, was anyone's guess, though Itami surmised they definitely had assistance from Public Safety. The likelihood of a drone or two being utilized wasn't too far fetched, either.

After all, America was providing for this op.

The groups' destination, Hakone, was definitely a change in scenery. The drive itself took a good forty minutes, and for good reason. As opposed to Tokyo, the locale was about as rural as you could get in Japan. Large towers and congested streets were replaced by mountainsides, and dense forests that spanned for miles with the occasional rice field beside the road.

Much like the city, this part of Japan had a certain allure of its own. Many of the Special Region guests found themselves glued to the windows as they watched the countryside pass by. The Marines and the Japanese, on the other hand, were too tired. They were just content to get some sleep during the ride.

It was going to be a long night, probably sleepless, too, but even Itami and Aldritch could agree everyone needed time off. Scarce moments to unwind were the lifeblood of those in uniform; they were times to be cherished, and taken full advantage of.

Main reason why they stopped at a store to buy beers. Lots of beers.

So, naturally, it was no surprise that spirits raised up high when they arrived at the Onsen.

The bathhouse itself was tucked away in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by thick woods and a single narrow road unsuitable for vehicles. As such, the Falmartese, Marines and Japanese ditched the trucks and began to walk.

"Well, shit. We living now, huh?"

Elton whistled as the mismatched group arrived at the bathhouse entrance, pausing for a second to admire the place. The Onsen was the picture perfect example of Japanese architecture; Wooden sliding doors, a small stream that led to a pond out front, the traditional style tiled roofs.

It was a cozy little place, perfect for the large amount of noise the group would be making later.

"Yo, this looks like a place out of one of those Slasher films." Benitez chuckled as he looked around at the heavily forested area surrounding the bathhouse. "Ya'll got a Japanese version of Jason or something?"

"Man, shut the hell up. Trying to keep me watching the trees n shit." Wilkes shook his head, making his way past everyone and towards the Onsen's front door with a case of beer tucked underneath each arm, his C-bag hanging off his back.

Kincaid looked at his father and raised an eyebrow, holding back with him and keeping his voice to a low murmur. It had been a while since they had had some time to chat, both men being ran ragged all day.

"Damn, pops. You guys really pulled out the stops for this place."

The agent shook his head. "Wasn't our decision, we just scoped the place out. Made sure it was safe enough for you guys to stay."

"And is it?"

Jackson smiled before looking around to make sure nobody was listening in. "There's a Japanese Special Operations team in the forest. We got some of our own guys with em too."

"MSD?"

"Yeah, but you remember how I told you a while back? That they're not exactly operators?"

Kincaid nodded with a smile. "Yeah. You told me that so I didn't get my hopes up and try to go that route in DS."

"Yeah, well, these guys are the real deal, hand picked for this detail. All former SOG. SEALS, Delta, think we got some Rangers with em, too."

"Christ, that's a lot of hurt."

"Yeah. Their actual layout was coordinated by Itami, apparently. Gotta hand it to the guy. Acts like a goofball, but he knows his shit."

"Heh, yeah. He has his moments."

Jackson paused and noticed Kincaid had been glancing at Kurokawa every so often. He smiled before patting his son on the back. "So, whats the story with the amazonian?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on son. Don't think your old man doesn't know any better. You two were hanging on each other all day, looked like a damn married couple." He smirked before raising an eyebrow. "Hell of a dangerous game son. I'd keep that under wraps. Sure your lieutenant wouldn't be too happy with grab ass going on, especially on the clock."

Kincaid sighed. He couldn't exactly disprove his father; he knew damn well the agent had been watching him from god knew where all day.

"It's not really like that, dad. I was just enjoying myself, that's all."

"Oh, and I don't blame you. Just make sure when it's time to work, you're ready to work. Whatever it is you two do, save that for here, and leave it behind when you go back through. You got a mission to accomplish, you're not over there to date."

"I know, dad. I'm just... trying to get some me time in, you know? Be normal for a bit while I can."

"I understand, son. Just remember what I told you, alright? Your number one mission is to get through your deployment, and come back home alive. Do your job right. We trackin?"

"Trackin."

"Good." Jackson looked around for a few moments, noticing they had lagged too far behind. "Well, then, lets head on in."

"Yeah, lets."

 **XXXXXXX**

If the outside of the onsen had looked spectacular, the same could be same for the inside. Spacious, plenty of rooms, a television in a big, open common room. There was even a walkway outside, if one needed a moment to get some fresh air.

Or smoke a cigarette, like the Marines were currently indulging in. It had been a while since the crew were able to get alone time, and all of them had plenty of stories to share about their respective adventures.

"So, George, you look like you sucked on a fucking sour lemon, my man."

"Yeah? Bro, I was carrying shit around all day. Do you have any goddamn idea how many weird ass stores we went into?"

"My mans, you probably looked like a mexican pimp." Wilkes paused as he looked at the strange shirt Benitez had under his jacket. "And, my mans, what the hell is that?"

By now the rest of the crew had noticed it too, moving the jacket around to get a better look.

Pink; an anime girl on the front in some sort of magical outfit, and the words "You'll Always Be My Senpai!" in white lettering encircling her.

Unlike Elton and Wilkes, Kincaid was jealous. Frustrated he couldn't anything like it. The most he had to show for his visit was some more manga, and a visual novel he was almost one hundred percent certain wasn't in Englsh.

That, and those stupid cat ears.

"Bro, where'd you get that?"

"Some store. I can't even remember the name."

Elton rolled his eyes, letting out a cloud of smoke before shaking his head. "Probably cause your stupid ass can't even read Japanese."

"That's a tragedy right there."

Benitez grumbled before glaring at his tank commander. "So? Dumb and dumber went to a maid cafe on a double date here. I got to play the role of main character in some sort of warped harem episode. The hell did you do all day, daddy do?"

Elton folded his arms, a blank expression on his face. "Honestly, we just got lost."

"Got lost?"

"Yeah. We just wandered around, hit up some parks, let the little monster roam around. Other besides that, we had no idea where the hell we were."

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Bro, I texted you like three times."

"Bitch, I was being a family man!"

"Uh huh."

Wilkes chuckled as he leaned in. "Man, all I know is I'm getting ass tonight. Dog, what? Shino was on me all day." He looked at Kincaid with a smirk. "My man's Jasper getting yams, too. I feels it."

"Oh come off it, bro. She's too...good for that." Kincaid tossed his cigarette butt away as he rolled his eyes. "Besides, they're Japanese. They don't do shit the same way we do."

Wilkes shook his head and sighed. "Nigga, you gotta read the environment more, ya mean? Peep, we got alcohol, tomorrow we gotta go back through the gate. They've probably got stress pent up just as much as we do."

"So you're asking me to push her towards that?"

"No. What I'm saying is that you ain't giving yourself more credit, my mans. Just watch, you'll see."

Elton nodded in agreement. "Yeah, bro. This is one of those now or never type moments. This might be your last best chance to be human for a while, you know what I mean? Once we go back, it's right back to the grind." The tank commander smirked. "Me? I'm all good, marriage benefits, my dude."

Kincaid scoffed. "Oh, must be fuckin nice. Look, let's just see what happens, alright?"

"Whatever, man. Your loss. But peep."

"Yeah?"

"Could be worse. My nigga Little John over here's probably not getting jack shit tonight." Wilkes looked at Benitez and chuckled. "Nigga, you ain't getting shit."

"Kiss my ass."

The tank crew fell into laughter for a few moments before falling into silence.

"Hey, son?" Jackson poked his head from inside as he opened a sliding door. "I gotta get ready to go back on duty."

Kincaid sighed as he threw his cigarette butt, looking back at his father. "Alright. Well, can I at least see you off?"

"Of course." Jackson looked at the rest of the Marines. "Sorry we couldn't chat more, boys. Duty calls, you know?"

One by one the rest of Kincaid's crew nodded as they said their byes.

"Aight, papa Kincaid. Take care out there."

"Thanks for looking out for us today."

"Rah gunny."

With that, Kincaid followed his father over towards the other side of the Onsen.

 **XXXXXXX**

Kincaid held the Sig Sauer his father gave him with a raised eyebrow, giving it a quick rack. "Okay, dad, what the hell is this for?"

"Protection. Operators or not, I don't feel good with everyone else here not being armed."

"But is it necessary? What about you, isn't this your sidearm?"

Jackson laughed and lifted his jacket up, revealing a Glock holstered on the other side of his waist. "Shit, son. You know damn well I'm always packing."

Kincaid shook his head and chuckled as he tucked the Sig into his jean's waistline, hiding it under his jacket. "Yeah, looks like you finally got the Glock." He paused before giving his father an incredulous look. "But why the hell don't I get the Glock? I can hide it better than this fucking clunky ass Sig."

"Because I just bought it before I got posted on this assignment. Son, you must be smoking some really good cigarettes if you think I'm letting you tote my new toy around."

"But I'm the first born."

"Okay?"

"That's messed up pops."

Both the men laughed before giving each other a firm hug, staying like that for a while. "I'm sorry, son."

"What for dad?"

"For not being able to spend time with you; not being able to talk to you more."

"Dad, it's alright. We've been over this before. This is our life."

"That doesn't make it any better." Jackson patted his son on the back as he continued to hold him. "I just want you out, son. Hurry up and get this deployment done. Enjoy tonight, but leave everything that happens here behind you, got it? All of it. Once you're back through, it's game time. Got it?"

"Got it."

As the pair let go of one another, Jackson took a moment to eye his son once more, nodding in approval before smiling. "You make me proud, son. You always have. Look at you, you've grown into a fine young man, you know that?"

Kincaid shook his head, his father was lapsing into one his moments again. He couldn't blame him, he was pretty emotional at times too.

Like father, like son.

"Ah, come on dad, I have you and mom to thank for that, you know? I'm just doing what I can."

"Give yourself more credit, Jasper. You've done good work, and you'll continue to do good work." Jackson paused as he tapped his earpiece, sighing before shaking his head.

"Alright, son, I gotta go. you take care, alright? We'll be back in the morning to pick you up."

"Alright dad."

As Jackson made his way towards the exit path, he paused and turned around. "Oh, and call your mother, okay? She's still been blowing up my phone."

Kincaid facepalmed before groaning. "Ah, crap. Sorry, pops. I'll get on it."

"You better."

The agent continued on his way before stopping once more and turning around. "Son?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you have protection?"

"Dad! Come on now!"

"Come on, nothing. I know how fucking Marines get. You're gonna be drinking, and the next thing you know you're gonna start thinking with your fucking pecker."

Kincaid sighed. His father was right. "Yeah, I'm sure Elton has some."

 _Totally a lie_

"Good. Remember, son, wrap it before you-"

"Tap it. Jesus, dad, just go." Kincaid laughed, his father doing the same before leaving out of eyesight.

The gunner stood there for a few moments. There he went again, another fleeting moment of time to talk to his father. No matter how long Kincaid's family had been like this, it never got easier.

"Hey, Kincaid."

The corporal promptly turned around at the sound of Aldritch's voice. "Yes, sir?"

"Just wanted to let you know, everyone's about to hit the hot springs. Figured I'd let you know. You coming along?"

"Shit, you don't gotta ask me twice, sir."

 **XXXXXXX**

As it turned out, Japanese hot springs work a little different than the hot tubs the Marines were used to.

For starters, one didn't wear anything when entering the water. This really wasn't an issue, but the Marines couldn't help but try and weird Itami out. They had caught him staring at their tattoos more than once, and thus poked fun at his sexual orientation.

"Shit, sir, like what you see?" Had been the most common jab, Aldritch falling victim to saying this just as much as his men.

Itami was either fascinated by the large amounts skin ink, or was confused over the fact that the Marines were built much differently than he was. They weren't so much chiselled, as they were just big slabs of meat. This was in stark contrast to the more slim, athletic build most Japanese people had, his subordinate Tomita being an exception.

Secondly, one had to shower first before entering the water. This was, of course, not followed at all, as Wilkes yelled at the top of his lungs before cannon balling into the water, the rest of the enlisted men just walking in right after.

Finally, and this was probably an unspoken rule, beer was usually not the choice in beverage when lounging in the hot springs.

Either way, this rule was also broken; the Marines cracking open cans and lounging in the water.

There was also the matter of the simple bamboo wall separating the male and female sides, something even Itami and Tomita couldn't help but put a great deal more thought into than necessary.

"Bruh, we made it. We really made it." Wilkes leaned against one the stones serving as a wall as he gazed up at the night sky. The loader took a long swig from his Budweiser before sighing. "This right here, this is some living, ya dig? I fuckin love Japan."

Kincaid had been double fisting two beers, keeping only his head and hands exposed over the water. "Still, doesn't beat Myrtle Beach, though."

"True, that."

Aldritch nodded before tentatively taking a sip from his own can. "Well, this is certainly not the time of the year to be trying to go there. Now summer? Hell, count me in."

Elton paused as he crushed one of his cans, taking another one out of the case sitting on the edge of the pool. "You go there often, sir?"

"From time to time. We don't have beaches like that back home."

"Boston right? Massachusetts?"

"Yep. Back during my college days I had to do a bit of travelling if I wanted to hit up any good beaches."

Benitez had been off lounging, much the same as everyone else. The Hispanic merely sighed as he thought of home. "We got Coney and Long Island back home. You wanna talk about beaches? Those are some beaches."

"Nah fam, you gotta try the ones in Jamaica, or Africa." Kincaid nodded before chugging the last of his two cans before wadding over towards the case with eager eyes. As he set them down and grabbed two more, he looked over at Itami.

"Sir? What kind of beaches does Japan have?"

The Japanese lieutenant had been busying himself with just watching the Marines act like the man children they were. Tomita right next to him was enjoying the beer they had brought, and occasionally chiming in whenever he felt like adding something.

"Too many to name. I mean, we _**are**_ surrounded by water. They're all pretty nice, though. Annoying as hell during the tourist season. Unfortunately, that's the best time to go."

"Shit. Know that pain. Happens to be the same times Myrtle turns into a mad house."

"And whats that like?"

The enlisted Marines looked at each other with smiles as Kincaid took the lead. "A big nonstop party."

"Non stop?"

"Yep. Like I said, it's just a mad house of people running around drunk and soaking up the sun."

Us included.

Tomita chuckled. "Sounds like a hell of a fun place. I'll have to add that to my list of places to visit." The sergeant crushed his can before holding his hand up for another, Kincaid promptly tossing one to him.

As the men went back to relaxing, Itami sighed. "Well, looks like we're heading back tomorrow, huh? Back to work." The lieutenant stared up at the night sky. "Sometimes I forget we still have a mission over there, a war to go fight."

-Tonk- -Splash-

Itami's monologue was cut short as a can hit him in the forehead, then splashed into the water next to him.

"What was that for?!" As the surprised lieutenant looked around and picked the unopened can up, he looked at the perpetrator.

Aldritch, the Marine lieutenant shaking his head.

"Itami, when we're not working, we don't talk about work. Falmart isn't going anywhere, so let's cross that bridge when we get to it."

The rest of the Marines lifted their cans up. "Rah to that!"

"Alright, fine. You win."

 **XXXXXXX**

"So...Misses Elton. I'm curious, as the only married woman here how did you meet Elton?"

Samantha paused from ensuring her hair was still in a bun at the sound of Kurokawa's question, her eyes occasionally glancing over at the scene of Abigail playfully splashing with the three strange women from beyond the gate. She smiled thinking back to her in days in high-school and how goofy her husband had been back then.

And how he had suddenly up and decided to enlist out of nowhere for seemingly no reason.

"We went to highschool together. I still don't know what made me fall for him. Maybe it was his charm, the fact he always spoke his mind. Maybe it was because he was a bad boy." Samantha paused her smile unwavering. "He was just an interesting boy and he still is."

The rest of the English speaking women including Lelei listened in as Elton's spouse continued. Occasionally Lelei would translate to those that couldn't speak English, their reactions no less warm then anyone else's.

"It had only been a few weeks after we had graduated from Highschool when he told me he was going to enlist." Samantha turned to face the other girls. "You have to understand the stigma behind that back home for us. To enlist during a time of war it just feels so...silly. But men like my Parker did it anyways."

Shino finished a beer she had been nursing with a satisfied sigh before setting it down. "And what did you say?"

Samantha shook her head. "I did what young American women like me do all the time, I blindly followed my soon to be military man into that abyss."

"And did you regret it?"

Samantha looked back at her daughter and remembered the day she told Elton she was pregnant with her in a letter to him while he was at Parris Island.

"Not a single day of it, through all the good and the bad. Through training and deployment. He's been a loving father and a good husband."

When lelei had finished translating what Samantha had said most of the Special Region girls looked on in awe. It was still a strange concept to them. They knew the Marines were obviously human and wielded great power but the fact so many of them could be so young like Elton and have children.

It was just odd to them.

Kurokawa smiled. "He's also an outstanding Marine. You should be proud."

Samantha folded her arms with a nod. "Oh I am." Suddenly a sly smile over came her. "You know I've been noticing you and your comrade over there getting awfully close to his buddies. I sure hope you know what you're in for."

Shino flexed one of her arms as a mischievous grin came over her face. "Oh I can take Darian any day. That man needs a strong woman to keep his rowdy ass in line."

"Oh good luck, you'll need it. If I had a dollar for everytime his rowdy, drunken self had to get carried out of a group barbecue." Samantha raised an eyebrow. "I didn't expect you to be so blunt about it however."

Shino rolled her eyes. "Ugh. Do you have any idea how boring men are here? My sister might settle, but I sure as hell don't. Most of the men here are spineless or creepy old men. It's refreshing to fool around with a real man for once." The sergeant cracked opened another beer before chugging away at it for a few seconds, giving a satisfied sigh when she was done. "I need a real man to keep up with me, Darian is that man. When all of this is said and done? I'm claiming him."

She let out an uncharacteristically girlish giggle. "Whether he likes it or not."

Kurokawa raised an eyebrow. "You have a sister?"

Shino nodded in affirmation. "Sure do, you missed her at the Diet. She was the reporter in pink that kept lingering around the area, I was able to text her today but I havent' actually had a real chat with her since we left." The sergeant shrugged. "We always were an odd pair of siblings."

Samantha and the others who could understand simply sat there wide eyed, Shino certainly didn't hold anything back. The military was definitely the place for someone like her.

"Now I'll tell you who needs to stop beating around the bush though." Shino swam over to a clearly annoyed Kurokawa and put an arm around her shoulder. "Little Miss proper over here."

Kurokawa scoffed before shaking her head. "It isn't like that."

"Oh it's not?"

"No."

"Then why do you keep nagging him? Why do you insist on babying him too? He's a grown man who's gotten this far probably jumping from relationship to relationship." Shino shook her head. "It's like you want to be his mom or something."

The medic glared back at the rowdy sergeant. "I want to help him."

"Well, why?"

"Cause he needs it."

"Enough for you to get territorial when you saw the snake girl? Enough for you to put your arm around his and get all close?"

Mari sat there for a few moments before sighing. She knew she was defeated, this only made Shino snicker in response. "It's okay to admit it. Hell, you're both the same height."

As the two soldiers began to drag the confused Special Region females into the bickering Samantha took a moment and glanced over at Risa. The woman had been quiet the entire time and Samantha had a good guess as to why.

Unlike her she had left her military man and for whatever reason it was, she was clearly ashamed. Seeing an opportunity to break the ice she swam over and addressed the solemn woman.

"You were married to Itami, weren't you?"

The middle aged woman nodded, fixing her glasses for a few moments as she continued to look down. "Yes I was. Unlike you I can't say I was as strong in keeping the bond strong. Shame huh? You're younger than me too."

Samantha shook her head with a smile. "It's not for everyone. Elton's had buddies who never even deployed and their significant others couldn't keep pushing on."

Risa looked back at Samantha hopefully. "Really?"

"Of course, but do you want to hear some good news?"

Risa nodded. "Sure."

"Some of them wound up getting back together after realizing what they had lost." Samantha smiled. "I won't ask what happened between you two, it's not my place. But I _**can**_ say this. Sometimes strange things happen in our lives, I think this gate might be one of those things. You have a man who probably still has lingering feelings for you off at war now. Do you have any idea how much of a rock you could be for him?"

Risa nodded. "I..I guess."

"No there's no guessing here Risa. Itami probably needs you, I've seen how he acts around you. That spark is still there, call it a married woman's intuition. If you think Elton and I didn't break up multiple times before we got married? You'd be nuts." Samantha chuckled. "Now tell me this, do you still have feelings for him?"

Risa sat there for a while.

"I've missed him ever since he left and I've been worried ever since he went through the gate."

"Well then that answers that." Samantha gave a thumbs up. "I think it's time for you to be his rock again."

Risa shook her head, her eyes going back to looking down. "I-I don't know, do you think-"

"Yes girl. Absolutely."

Risa looked back up at Samantha, a smile growing on her face. "...Alright. Alright I'll do it."

"That's the spirit!" Samantha looked back at the bickering going on and saw how her daughter was giggling at all of it. "We should probably join the others before things escalate huh?"

"Hah yeah, probably." Before the pair swam over to meet the others Risa stopped Samantha. "Misses Elton?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"Heh." Samantha flexed a muscle of her own. "You know what they say, behind every strong man is a stronger woman. Us strong women gotta stick together don't we?"

"Absolutely."

"Oh and one more thing."

"Yes?"

"Please don't call me Misses Elton. Makes me feel old."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Wait. Sir, the fuck's Falmart?"

"Uh... the continent we're fighting in?"

"...Uh huh."

"You didn't ask, either?"

"Nope."

"Bah, who gives a shit." Kincaid laughed before making his way to the center and putting his can forward. "Yo, to us. Team Ass Kicker."

One by one the men stepped to the center of the pool, clanging their cans together before yelling.

"TO TEAM ASS KICKER!"

They then proceeded to chug their cans and fall into more casual laughter and banter.

"SHUT UP!" Shino's voice came over from the other side of the the bamboo wall, a can flying through the air before landing right atop Wilkes's head.

This only sparked a massive series of back and forth yelling between both sexes as a mini war began.

"YO, BET YOU DON'T HAVE THE BALLS TO COME OVER HERE AND TRY THAT!"

"YEAH!? BET YOU'D LIKE THAT, DARIAN!"

"MAYBE!"

"Oh! Are the men over there!? Can we go say hello?!"

"No, Rory! That's not how it works here! Get down from the wall!"

Wilkes promptly picked up one of the empty cans and tossed it back, just as Aldritch stepped in to quiet everyone down. There was a loud tapping noise before everything went silent.

The men sat there for a few moments, unsure of what to do before Shino's voice came laughing from the other side.

"WOW! WAY TO GO, DUMBASS! YOU TOTALLY HIT RISA!"

All of the men promptly glared at Wilkes, the loader blinking incredulously before folding his arms and scoffing.

"Yo, why ya'll lookin at me like that? They started it."

 **XXXXXXX**

 _Hours later..._

"So, you're alright?"

"Yeah, mom, I'm fine."

"Listen, Jasper, you can't fault me for worrying, alright? You're off on the other side of some gate, fighting in another world against magic and dragons. How can I not be worried?"

Kincaid sighed as he leaned against one of the Onsen's outside walls, taking a drag from a freshly lit cigarette as he tried to sound as composed as possible.

He was pretty drunk, after all.

By now, just about everyone had either retreated to bed, or were off simply relaxing. Unfortunately, it just so happened that at the only time Kincaid could get any peace and quiet to make this call, his body was full of booze.

Once everyone had left the hotsprings, they quickly got comfortable for the night. Unlike the Japanese and Special region guests, garbed in Yukatas provided by the onsen, the Marines had changed into attire they knew best.

Hoodies, sweatpants, "bum clothes", as the men liked to call them.

After that, the entire night had turned into one big party. Alcohol flowed freely while stories were swapped between members of both worlds; good spirits hung high in the air as music being played in the background. Pictures were taken to remember this night, and quickly put up on social media websites.

Naturally, one drink turned into two, which turned into a mess of troops and civilians acting like outright clowns. Grown adults stood on tables and pretended to be royalty, with a stupid medieval jingle playing in the background as they reenacted some stereotypical, retarded feudal interactions. All while the Special Region guests clapped and egged them on.

Kincaid had been heavily drinking through all of this, so it was no surprise he almost forgot about calling his mother.

"Mom, look, look." Kincaid closed his eyes as he stammered around for a few minutes. He felt terrible. Deep down, regardless of his intoxication, he felt absolutely terrible. He had a million and one thoughts racing through his mind, both from earlier, and from events yet to come. Now, here he was, talking to his mother and not even sober enough to give her a proper call.

"There's nothing this world... can do to us, okay? The tanks are safe."

"Jasper... you're drunk, aren't you?"

Kincaid sighed before taking another lazy drag, slumping against the wall in his sweats. "Yeah...yeah, I am, mom."

He could just barely make out a sigh on the other end before Alice started speaking again. "Look, I just wanted to hear my son's voice, alright? I understand you're enjoying liberty right now, and I'm happy for that. Are you really okay, though?"

"Yes, it's nothing I haven't... dealt with."

Another sigh. "Look, just text me in the morning, okay? I gotta get ready to go meet your sister out in town."

"Mom..?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what? What do you have to be sorry for?"

"I just... wish I wasn't drunk right now. You don't deserve me talking to you like this. I just... I have a lot on my mind, I try to ignore it all. But..."

"It's okay, son. Look we'll talk later, okay? I love you. Have fun."

"Love you too, mom."

Kincaid turned his phone off, leaning back on the wall and enjoying the outside night air. Occasionally, a small breeze would whip up and whistle through the trees nearby. It was nice outside, calming, but it also got him thinking.

This was the first time he'd been alone in a long, long time.

There was always someone around, be it the other Marines, or one of the many other people he found himself in contact with. It didn't really bother him, but it also took away the chance to be alone with his thoughts.

And, in the service, that could be a dangerous thing. Often at times it was all that work, all that interaction that kept a troop's mind from wandering to unpleasant subjects, and that's what was happening to Kincaid at this very moment.

He was right, or, at least, he was starting to think so.

Throughout the entirety of the deployment so far, he had been trying to ignore everything that had been going on. Alnus, the Dragon, Italica. Hell, even the Japan visit had been one hell of a roller coaster ride, a small break before the gate swallowed him and everyone else up.

Often, at times, Kincaid wondered just how "fine" he really was.

Was he lying to himself? Was he really a lot more damaged than he made himself out to be? What of this deployment? Would it effect him the same way Afghan had? When would he get to go back home? Was the entire coalition just incredibly lucky so far, a luck that was about to run out soon?

What about Mari? Where would that go? Was he being an idiot, playing with fire and tempting himself to get burned?

And what of Aurea? Was he just being an idiot and falling for his own fancies, or was there legitimately something there, a chance to learn and teach someone in a way he had never been able to before? He found her attractive, in a bizarre alien sort of way. It was that rush, that sense of the unknown that made him stare at their photo from time to time.

And desire to see her again.

All of this made his head spin, more so with the alcohol still in his system. It made him feel off, and he didn't like it. Kincaid was a man with simple desires, none of this was simple in the slightest.

"Fuck..."

"Jasper?"

He paused from his train of inebriated thoughts as Kurokawa came outside, closing the sliding door behind her with a raised eyebrow as she saw him. "There you are. How long have you been out here?"

Kincaid shook his head lazily as he continued to stare at the forest beyond. "While.."

"Well, have you seen Wilkes or Shino? Everyone else is practically asleep or too drunk to respond."

"Well, ask yourself this." Kincaid slowly turned and looked at her. "Where do you think they are?"

"Are you kidding me? Here, of all places?" The medic groaned and shook her head in disgust. "All of these people, and they sneaked off into one of the rooms to get some quick fuck?"

"Yeah, that sounds like Wilkes' MO."

Kurokawa noticed the rather unsavory tone in the Marine's voice, her face twisting into one of worry as she made her way over to him.

"Jasper, are you okay? You sound... well, you don't sound so good."

"Nah, Mari. I'm pretty far from okay."

"Well... wanna talk?" Kurokawa slowly sat down next to the inebriated Marine, taking her time to make sure her Yukata didn't go all over the place before she leaned against him.

"Yeah, we can."

"Well, what's bothering you?"

"Everything."

"Everything?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I can't help you if you go telling me something like that."

Kincaid groaned before shaking his head. "Just... this deployment... it's just been a lot to think about, you know?"

"I understand. Believe me, my mind's been kinda all over the place, too. I mean, everyone's has. You're not wrong for that. I mean, different worlds would do that to anyone."

She paused as she thought back to the night terror she had seen him have, the mumbling in his sleep at Risa's. Whatever happened back in Afghanistan could only have been made worse now that this deployment had transpired.

"Say... Jasper?"

"Yeah?"

"Back at Italica..." Kurokawa paused as she tried to find the words to ask the question the right way. She knew there weren't any, and part of her knew she was slightly intoxicated, too.

This was dangerous and she knew it.

"When we were at Italica, you said we'd... well, we would talk about what happened to you. In Afghanistan."

Kincaid sighed, dragging it out for a while as he tried to compose himself.

"Listen, Jasper, I'm sorry. That has nothing to do with all of thi-"

"No, it's fine. It's not like its some unspeakable horror. I don't hide from it. Besides, a promise is a promise, right?"

"Well..."

The marine gazed at the woods beyond, losing himself in the darkness as he continued talking. "So... Raymond, right? I told you about him, didn't I?"

"Yes. You wear that arm band."

"Right, well, he was my old gunner. I was the loader, Wilkes was the driver, and Sergeant Mendez was our tank commander. I got that crew two months into the fleet, and stuck with that crew all the way to Afghanistan."

He paused as he thought back to old photos of the crew. The young, unhardened faces they still had, faces eager to prove themselves and lose the title of boot.

"Raymond was... the closest thing to a sort of big brother figure I had when I hit the fleet. He taught me everything I needed to know about being a tanker. The important stuff, anyways. He was kind of Wilkes' and I's ring leader, kept us in line whenever the higher ups were around. Outside of that, he was just as wild as we were. Really smart, too."

Kurokawa listened intently as he continued, taking note of how his voice began to change.

"Anyways, so... Well, Afghanistan happened. We were the last tank company to go over there. By then we were pretty damn good, you know? We could make that tank do amazing things, Mari. Whenever I got inside with my crew, I felt like we could do anything, take on anything the world could throw at us."

"I bet you could Jasper, I bet you were an amazing tank crew."

"Well... we weren't good enough. About six months in, we were on a routine road march to Elton's FOB. Shiqvani was its name. Anyways, we... we hit this crossroad and, uh..."

He stopped to recollect his thoughts.

"Well... we got hit." Kincaid brought a hand to his forehead, his hand twitching as it travelled through the air. "And Raymond, well... It doesn't work like movies, you know? Sometimes you don't get to say goodbye. There isn't some... long monologue, as you hold your dying buddy in your arms."

A single tear gave way to more, the gunner slowly letting go. "He was yanked away from me, Mari. Gone, just like that. And I... we didn't get time to grieve, either. Oh, no. No sooner had we got hit, the fucking hadjis came down on us. There was fuck ton of them, and most of the platoon had already pushed pretty far ahead. Wilkes and I had to fight the bastards ourselves until they could regroup with us. Sergeant Mendez was knocked out, so it fell onto us to protect our tank."

Kurokawa leaned in closer, her arm slowly wrapping around Kincaid's shoulder as she drew him in close. When it was her time to talk, he'd let her know. All that mattered now was that he knew she was there for him.

"You know what's funny, Mari? The tank was fine. We had it up and running again within a week. Amazing, isn't it? The tank survives, but your gunner gets his neck snapped."

As Kincaid continued to sob, Kurokawa sat there. For the first time she was absolutely unsure of what to do. Was there anything she could say he hadn't already heard before? She felt helpless, a feeling made only worse for one simple reason.

She wanted him.

There was no other way to explain it. The excitement of something new, the thrill of what he did, his fun demeanor that made everything seem just fine. He was an interesting man, but right now he was in pain.

She had to do something.

"Nothing feels right, I haven't felt normal in so long Mari. You don't do what we do and ever bounce back. Like, being a tanker, it sucks the fucking soul out of you." Kincaid paused as he tried to find his words, the alcohol continuing to make him pour everything out. "My knees ache whenever I stay on em for too long, my lungs feel constricted from all the smoking I do. Yeah, you know why we smoke so much? So we don't lose our fucking minds."

Mari sat there, her heat rate increasing rapidly as the distraught Marine continued.

"I mean fuck, here I am wanting to go home. How do I know I'll be able to ever fit in anymore? You don't just get out and ever be normal again, specially not after being a tanker. I hear the other guys talk about it all the time. Now here I am in this fucking gate, doing more fucked up shit. My brain feels like mush. I..I just don't know what to think."

"Jasper..?"

A cough, the sound of rapid breathing starting to slow down as he turned to look at her. "What?"

For what seemed like hours, both of the troops stared stared into each other's eyes. What happened next was inevitable, the result of too many beers and bottled up frustration.

The were no words. No confessions, or deep conversations. Only a guttural feeling of need, of wanton lust with one thought in mind.

Thus, as tongues collided, and hands explored the dark corners of the others' anatomies, the couple gave in to their primal urges.

They didn't care, each wanted to live for the now.

Clothes were discarded and thrown along the way as they stumbled into a random room, only taking a single, awkward pause of much needed responsibility before sinking themselves into each other's warmth.

And so, for the first time since he crossed the Gate, Jasper Kincaid felt normal again.

 **XXXXXXX**

After a few hours of tossing and turning under the sheets, the two troops simply lay down on some tatami mats, staring up at the ceiling. Kurokawa's head was resting on Kincaid's chest, an arm drooped over his stomach as she pressed against his side.

There wasn't anything to be said; actions speak louder than words after all, and both were too busy thinking of the multitude of possibilities doing all this meant. Occasionally they'd look at each other, share a kiss, and go back to enjoying the warmth of each others' body, sharing a small laugh when they'd heard a dull thud coming from the room next door.

Where, by sheer coincidence, Shino and Wilkes were doing their thing.

The moonlight shone into the room through a small window, barely lighting up the green floors beneath the naked couple. With clothes scattered everywhere, the place looked like a mess, something that, for one reason or another, began bothering Mari to no end.

"We... should clean this up a bit."

"Huh?"

"Jasper, this room is filthy."

"...So? We'll just clean it in the morning." The disgruntled Marine drooped an arm over his face. He wasn't moving.

Kurokawa groaned as she got up, barely covering herself with the covers as she looked around. A small metallic glint called her attention from under Kincaid's pants, and she stretched out to grab whatever it was.

The Sig.

"Jasper?! you have a gun?"

"Uh? Oh, yeah."

"Wha- why?!"

"Dad gave it to me, just in-"

The door snapped open with a crack, Kurokawa yelping in surprise as a stressed looking Benitez burst into the room.

Kincaid simply groaned. "What?"

"Bro, we have a problem."


	22. Back to The Grind

**Alright, look before ya'll come running at me with pitchforks n shit...**

 **Ah hell, fuck it kick my ass. I'll be honest I got lazy prior to this chapter. Once my summer classes were done I just kinda kicked back and fell into gaming, the gym, and enjoying my time off.**

 **Thank you Armored Warfare.**

 **Needless to say, I'm already a week and ankles deep into a new semester of college. Definitely behind in updating, so I told myself. "Shit, well lemme get back on that ole dusty trail."**

 **Did I or did I not say I wasn't quitting this? Pretty sure I did. As ever, before I go on I'd like to thank the support of the community and everyone who's been following this little tale of mine. Them follows and favs tho, ya'll awesome you know that?**

 **So without further ado, the beast that is Hakone awaits. Hold onto your pants kiddies, it's gonna get RAW AS FUCK.**

 **Edit: If you've made it this far. I changed Dirrel and various others with their real world counterparts. Why? Because I couldn't mirror this story to be reflection of real life if I didn't actually put them in. It makes things flow easier and really brings some sense of reason to all this.**

* * *

 **Chapter 22: Back to The Grind**

 _"For those who fight for it, life has a flavor the protected never know."_

Inscription on the back of a flak jacket worn by a Marine machine-gunner on the DMZ, RVN, 1968

 **DECEMBER 14TH, 0400 HOURS, HAKONE ONSEN, JAPAN  
**

"Ugh... what do you want?"

"Um...you have any, you know?"

Kincaid grumbled as he sat upright, his bed mate quickly scrambling under the covers to shield her dignity. "No. I'm busy, go ask Elton or something."

Benitez turned to the door and was about to leave before the gunner stopped him.

"Wait. What do you even want condoms for?"

"They're not for me."

"Then who are they for?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Well look man either tell me or bounce. This ain't a job for the Mystery Gang."

"Ugh, I'll tell you tomorrow."

The driver merely sighed and nodded, leaving the room and giving a quick, devilish look at Mari before closing the door.

Silence fell on the room before the medic spoke up. "Okay, Jasper, what the hell?"

The Marine sighed. "What?"

"Don't 'what' me. How can you be so calm after that? And who the hell needs condoms? It's four o' clock in the morning."

Kincaid merely stared at her with a raised eyebrow. "I don't know, maybe Itami?"

Kurokawa's eyes widened at the implications. "Oh my god. No. Don't tell me. And what was that all about? Why aren't you angry?!"

"Mari, we're Marines. We do this crap all the time back in the barracks."

"You what? Seriously?"

"Yeah. Wouldn't be the first time one of us walked in on each other."

"'Do this crap all the time?'" the medic scoffed indignantly. She nudged herself closer to him with hands on her hips, glaring daggers as she shoved her angry face as close as she could in an accusatory way.

Kincaid would feel her anger, she'd make sure of it.

"What kind of backwards thinking is that? Listen, Jasper. One, this is not your barracks, or an orgy house. Two, I'm not some random hooker, or a one night stand. I was expecting a bit more..." She paused for a second, her pride hurting as she struggled for words. " _ **Consideration**_ on your part. You can't-"

She didn't have time to finish before a set of lips locked her mouth. She struggled for a moment before her anger subsided, giving in to the kiss as their tongues began to dance. She closed her eyes for a second, then parted, leaving her wanting with a mess of emotions.

" _Baka_."

"Well, it worked, didn't it?" Kincaid grinned before getting a playful nudge.

"You... Either way." Mari scooped up the pistol and held it before his eyes. "Seriously, what's this for?"

"Well that's the gun I like to carry around for business. The other one-"

"Jasper."

"Yeesh, alright. Listen, my pops is just paranoid like that."

"Paranoid about what? That we might get attacked? Public Safety owns this place." The medic scoffed as she slid the pistol underneath one of the pillows.

"Who the hell knows, he's just weird like that." Kincaid shrugged, eyeing the pile of clothes beside him before crawling up and digging for his shirt. Kurokawa eyed him for a few moments, a small smirk forming on her face before something caught her attention.

"Jasper, what's that?" The medic slowly raised a finger and pointed at Kincaid's shoulder. The Marine paused from pulling his shirt down, glancing at the odd black skull shaped tattoo on his shoulder for a moment.

"What, this?"

"Yeah, what is that?" Kurokawa cocked her head to the side in curiosity. "Is that a mammoth skull?"

 _Jesus Christ...not you too._

Kincaid raised an eyebrow before pulling his shirt down and fetching his hoodie off the floor. "You don't know what this is?"

"No."

"It's a Star Wars thing. It's Boba Fett's logo."

Kurokawa sat there confused for a moment. "Boba Fett?"

Kincaid's eyes went wide as his head slowly panned over to look at the dumbfounded medic. "Boba Fett? Bounty Hunter with the jet pack? Star Wars?"

"Never watched it."

"Never watched it?!"

Kurokawa folded her arms with a look of contempt. "No Jasper, I was never into that sort of thing." The medic hadn't realized it, but she had just completely rattled the Marine's brain. He opened his arms with a look of sheer confusion on his face.

"I practically grew up on Star Wars, everyone knows who Boba Fett is!"

"Well I don't."

"Well you're just not fun then."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing."

Kurokawa shook her head before pausing, a thought crossing her mind. "And just where are you going anyways?"

"Heading outside for a smoke."

"I really wish you'd stop that. That's a terrible habit, you know?"

"So is this job."

"Smooth. Though I'm fairly certain you've used that comeback before."

The Marine chuckled before sliding his pants back on. "Yeah, well.."

"Well?"

"I uh.." Kincaid paused before grinning. "Ran out of slick shit to say."

Kurokawa chuckled before shaking her head. "I'm sleeping with a clown. Do hurry back."

Kincaid gave a half hearted smirk before slipping his hoodie back on. "That was the plan."

With that, the Marine slowly made his way onto the walkway, sliding the door shut as he lit his cigarette. As he turned back, a dark figure met his eyes, its shape quickly recognized by the tanker.

Wilkes.

Kincaid let out a cloud of smoke as he walked over, placing a hand on the loader's shoulder as they exchanged greetings.

"Yo."

"Sup."

The two Marines stood there for a few minutes, tending to their cigarettes as they enjoyed the night's air.

"So, how was it?"

The loader sighed, his eyes fixed on the woods ahead. "Bruh, that shit was fucking weird."

Kincaid did his best to suppress a chuckle. "Oh? So you gonna tell me, or.."

"Nigga, I felt like _**I**_ was the one getting fucked."

"I fucking told you man. I told you she'd twist your dumb ass into a pretzel."

Wilkes let out a cloud of smoke before grumbling. "Kiss my ass. Anyways, how about you?"

Kincaid chuckled. "A lot better than yours, actually."

 _The warmth of our bodies melting together as nails dug into my back, a series of words exchanged in the heap of drunk emotion._

The gunner smiled to himself before Wilkes jabbed him in the ribs.

"Yo?"

Kincaid snapped out of his daydreaming as he took another drag. "Sorry. Yeah, it was good."

"Uh huh. Good enough to fall in love with?"

Kincaid gave the unruly loader a sharp jab with his elbow. "Piss off, man. We were drunk, shit happened. Nothing more to say about it."

"Damn right there's nothing more to say about it. That's how it should be."

"Whatever, I still feel fucking wrong for doing it."

Wilkes rolled his eyes. "There you go again with that bull shit."

"Excuse me for having a moral compass."

"Uh huh, nigga you acting like you ain't never fucked and dipped before." Wilkes opened his arms with a look of disbelief. "I keep telling you man, this is how life goes for us. I dunno why you keep trying to rationalize it and shit, just fucking go with the flow."

Kincaid sighed. "'Go with the flow'? Bro like, I'm trying to 'go with the flow'. All of this shit just feels wrong. Like, it feels different this time."

"Nigga, this is about that snake head isn't it? Look man, you really gotta fucking stop with this shit. You're over here getting all melodramatic n shit over not one but _**two**_ women you prolly won't ever see much of."

"And you and Shino are just fuck buddies too?"

"Nigga, don't rope me into this. This is about _**you**_ , not me. I'm still living fine regardless of what the hell happens with her." Wilkes sighed, smoke pouring out of his mouth. "Look, what's the problem man? How many times have we talked about this shit?"

Kincaid sighed. "Look, I feel fucking devious man. Mari, she kinda reminds me of Kelly. Always wants her fingers in shit and trying to have control. She says she wants to 'help' but it feels more like she wants to fix me man. I don't need fixing."

 _And part of me wants my options open, which is fucking stupid considering I shouldn't even have options on deployment._

"Okay, like that I can understand. You always were bitching about Kelly, but lemme ask you this. Exactly what keeps making you stress out? Cause I know damn well your stupid nerd ass is only flipping out because of snake head. You and I know damn well you wouldn't give a rat's ass if it was just Mari."

Kincaid stood there for a few moments as he tried to find some sort of rebuttal. It never came, Wilkes was a brute but he was an intelligent brute. He knew people.

Years of hard living in and before the Corps did that to you.

"You know damn well I'm right too. You're over here trying to rationalize shit you don't need to be trying to rationalize in the first place. You got drunk, you fucked her and that's that. She prolly wants to date you and you're too afraid to just say no." Wilkes took another drag and exhaled a cloud of smoke. "I'm right aren't I?"

Kincaid sighed. "Yeah."

"Damn right I am, look my mans. You're in the wrong for flipping out about this, and she's wrong for thinking having sex while drunk means shit. Like, once we go back through that gate it's back to basics yo. She'll be lucky to even be on the same missions as us."

"I thought we'd be working with them more."

"Nigga, shit always comes out one way and goes another." Wilkes rolled his eyes. "Now, as for snake head. I think you only 'like' that shit because you're an odd ass nigga and want to fulfill your fantasy fetish. That's all well and fine, you get the chance to get yams go ahead and do it. But know that shit ain't any more likely to succeed than shit with Mari. In fact, you honestly stand a better chance of going somewhere with Mari. She's gonna come back through the gate with us at some point."

Wilkes glared. "Snake head won't, not anytime soon that is."

Kincaid had just finished another drag when he lazily looked over at Wilkes. "Dude I don't even know if it's like that. I mean, she's, cute but-"

"Dog, I've known you for four years now. I know when you're feeling a girl, ya'll were staring into each others souls dog. Like, I swear your eyes had become blank as fuck man. It, kinda freaked me the hell out."

"Yeah." Kincaid rubbed the back of his head. "I still don't kinda know what happened, felt like I was under a spell man. But that's not why I dig her man."

"Then what is?"

"I guess I just, I dunno man. You ever meet someone and you get that 'feeling'? Like, I dunno man. I feel like, maybe I should get to know her. Maybe I can do good in a girl's life for once. We did save her clan after all."

Wilkes chuckled. "You got them visions of grandeur nigga. But, I've always respected that shit about you man. You a real justice ass nigga. Maybe you're a little misguided with it, but at least you try."

Kincaid continued to stare at the night sky beyond, his eyes focusing on the stars. It would be a long time before he ever saw those again.

"Yeah, too bad she could potentially kill me. According to Mari, Aurea's species sucks souls out of people."

"That's pretty fuckin gangster yo."

Kincaid shook his head. "I'm being serious man."

"So am I. Regardless my mans, I don't think she's gonna kill you. She's like half your size, if you get killed by **_that_**? I'm laughing at your tombstone. Real talk.

"Thanks."

"All love. Anyways man, what you do is on you. You're a grown ass man. I'm only here to be your raw ass conscious, but bet money on this."

Kincaid raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"I swear to christ, keep your head in the fucking game. Our job over there is to end this fucking bull shit and come back. This shit isn't some fantasy love story my mans, we're at war. If I so much get the inkling of a feeling this shit is messing with you too much?"

Wilkes paused with a raised eyebrow, Kincaid merely exchanging the gesture. "Well?"

"Just stand the fuck by. All love man, you know I do it for you."

"Yeah."

Silence for a few moments.

"Bro?"

"Wussup?"

"If you and Shino become an item, I'm kicking your hypocritical ass."

"You can fuckin try, you know how I roll."

"Yeah, sometimes I wish I didn't. All love though."

Wilkes chuckled. "I'm necessary for you my mans. You can call me daddy two point O'."

"Bullshit."

More laughter.

"Bro."

"What?"

"Mari's never seen Star Wars, she thought my Boba Fett tattoo was a mammoth skull."

Wilkes rolled his eyes. "Nigguh it looks like a mammoth skull though."

"It ain't a god damn mammoth."

"They say it don't be like it is but it do."

"Ayy."

Some more laughter followed by the same contemplative silence.

"Man, Raymond would've loved to be here for this. Fucker would've probably killed that dragon on the first shot. Shit, you know I'm half the gunner he ever was."

"Shit, no joke there."

"Thanks asshole."

Wilkes chuckled before shaking his head. "Nah man, you did good. Shit happens, shit breaks. As for Raymond, yeah that nigga would've had a boner for this shit."

"Yeah he would've huh?"

"Yeah.."

Silence again.

"I miss him you know, I see him all the time. Well, you know when."

Wilkes put an arm around Kincaid's shoulder bringing his gunner and long time brother in arms close. "Yeah, yeah I know. I fucking miss his ass too. Think he'd be proud of us you know? Bet you he's watching us right now."

"You think so?"

"I _**know**_ so nigga. You know how I do though, I live for him." Wilkes turned to look at Kincaid. "And I live for us."

Kincaid sighed before putting an arm around Wilkes. "Yeah, we all do." He paused to take another drag. "Hey man."

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're here, I uh. We've been through a lot of shit you know? Tank school, the fleet, deployment and now this. I know I've said this a lot, but you're family to me man. I'm thankful to have you in my life, like. I fucking love you bro."

"Shit nigga, chill with that emotional ass shit. You know how I feel. I love you too man." Wilkes removed his arm from his brother's shoulder and turned to face him. "Ain't nothing in hell gonna keep us back. Not hadjis, not dragons, not even the fuckin gods themselves my mans. We're getting through this shit, and we're going home."

"Damn right."

"Amen!"

Suddenly the sound of a door sliding open interrupted the moment. The two tankers turned in the direction of the sound rolling their eyes as a nervous looking Itami stepped out. As the Japanese officer noticed the pair he sighed in relief before sliding the door shut and making his way over towards them.

"Oh thank god it's you two."

The Marines exchanged confused looks before Wilkes reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

"You uh, good?"

Itami promptly swiped the pack and plucked a cigarette out along with a lighter. "Not really, give me a moment."

"Shit, aight."

The officer lit a cigarette with shaking hands, promptly taking a drag and letting the smoke billow out of his mouth. As he began to calm down he shook his head before leaning against a nearby wall.

"Alright so. George stopped by, right Jasper?"

Kincaid raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, at a pretty shit time too." He paused and shook his head with a sigh. "Let me guess, you sent him?"

"Yeah.."

Wilkes stood there with a confused look on his face."Okay, what the hell happened? Ya'll trying to clue a brother in or nah?"

"Fucking George came in while I was." Kincaid paused.

 _Naked after sleeping with Mari._

"Sleeping, he woke me up."

"Bitch, please." Wilkes glared. "You think Itami's gonna care you fucked Mari?"

"Wow cock head, way to go."

"Nigga you're the one over here playing who's in my pants. Secret squirrel having ass."

"Fuck you."

Itami coughed on the drag he had taken, sputtering for a few moments before receiving a firm thump on the chest from Wilkes. Once he composed himself, he sighed.

"That's, well. I'm not really sure what to say about that. I uh."

Kincaid groaned. "Listen it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. Can we really not fucking talk about it?"

"Fair enough, I guess." Itami rubbed the back of his head nervously for a few moments before sighing. "Regardless, so I sent George because. Well, I knew he could probably ask you easier for that sort of thing."

Wilkes raised an eyebrow. "Sort of thing like?"

"Do I really have to say it?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Condoms? Youji, respectfully. I don't see what the problem is. Like, a simple knock would've been fine. I didn't have any anyways."

Wilkes chuckled. "Not any left, mister first name basis."

"Shutup man." Kincaid folded his arms. "We're all men here, we don't do gossip and we don't judge."

Wilkes nodded in agreement. "Lord knows all the weird shit we've ever done. The accused don't have the right to accuse and you can't bullshit a bullshitter."

"Exactly, so speak your mind Itami. Let it all out, probably not getting any fucking sleep tonight anyways."

Itami took another drag and stood there for a few moments before nodding. "Alright. So uh, I almost slept with Rory."

"If there's grass on the field, play ball. If not, flip em over and play in the-" Wilkes grunted as he received a sharp jab from Kincaid, the corporal rolling his eyes before sighing.

"Well, you don't have to explain the why of i-"

Itami groaned. "She just kinda threw herself at me, she started talking about a killing intent nearby and how it made her feel alive."

"Probably because there's fucking snake eaters in the woods providing security for this place."

"Snake eaters?"

Kincaid nodded. "Yeah your special forces and some guys from my dad's job."

"Oh, never heard SOGs called that before. You know I helped organize the security?"

"No shit? Learn something new everyday."

Wilkes rolled his eyes before lighting up another cigarette. "Man you gotta tell your pops to chill with the fucking Hitman shit."

"He's not a fucking hitman and you act like I had some sort of say in it." Kincaid swiped the pack of cigarettes from Wilkes before lighting up another one. As he took a drag he raised an eyebrow at Itami. "So my question is, what made you stop? More importantly, how the hell did you get away?"

Wilkes swiped the half crushed pack of cigarettes back from Kincaid with a scowl. "Yeah, like. My man's no offense, but you and Kincaid are nerd kings. I'd peg you as the last one to turn that shit down." He paused before letting some smoke pour out of his nose. "Like, I wouldn't exactly turn that shit down."

"Jesus christ man, we get it you're a monster." Kincaid groaned.

"What? She's nine hundred years old, it ain't exactly like _**that**_ you know."

"Whatever man. Anyways, he's right Youji. We've been operating in Falmart for a while now, you got three different girls chasing after you and each one pretty much fits the bill for fantasy romance. I haven't seen you so much as bat an eye at them you know?"

Itami stood there for a few moments his gaze slowly going towards the forest beyond, his voice beginning to trail off. "I guess, being back so soon made me realize I haven't really moved on. As for Rory, I just told her I'd be back later."

"Which is a lie that's gonna cost you, I hope you know that."

"Yeah I know, don't remind me."

Kincaid chuckled before shaking his head. "Anyways, you mentioned not moving on yet?"

Itami sighed. "Yeah. Look, so I know Risa doesn't look like much to you, I know she kinda puts off this odd vibe."

"Birds of a feather flock together yo." Wilkes mumbled as he let out a cloud of smoke. "You oughta see the girls we've been with. No offense or nothing."

"None taken. Anyways, it wasn't that long ago I was with her. She was my wife." Itami paused for a few moments before looking off. "I really did care about her, hell I still do. Things just, happened, you know? Things were already kinda shaky before, we were still getting used to the marriage itself. It didn't exactly kick off the right way you know? We were young, needed the money, but we made end meets you know?.

The lieutenant took a drag and expelled a cloud of smoke with a sigh. "Then the gate opened, I guess that was the straw that broke the camel's back. Things got too real, it's one thing seeing me go off to train. It's another thing for me to actually get put in harm's way you know?"

Kincaid cocked his head to the side, taking another a drag before letting out a cloud of smoke. "Believe us man, we know that all too well."

Wilkes merely nodded in agreement, watching Itami with lazy eyes as the lieutenant began to pace back and forth.

"Look, part of me would love nothing more than to. Well, give in to temptation, but that's not right. What kind of man would I be to just throw away years of marriage to go chase after some fantasy tail? Risa and I have chemistry, those girls in there. Well, regardless of what we've done to help them out, they really don't know me. They just, I feel like they like me because I'm something new."

Wilkes raised an eyebrow. "Feels like they've gotten to know you pretty damn well so far. Hell goddamn Lelei wanders into our area all the time just to see what's up."

"That's not the point. The point is." Itami paused from pacing, taking another drag. "Is that I still have feelings for Risa and seeing her again. It feels like the old days you know? The normal days, I'm a simple man I didn't ask for any of this. I just want to finish this campaign. I never thought I'd actually have to deploy. Kill people in such a way we have."

"Nobody does, welcome to our world." Wilkes shook his head. "Welcome to the world of deployment my mans. No offense but there's a lot of NATO guys who've been dealing with this shit for a long ass time. Everyone wants to be a gangster until it's time to do gangster shit."

Kincaid put a hand up and glared at Wilkes. "Relax man." He then turned his gaze towards Itami. "Look, Youji. While my man's over here is right, what you're feeling isn't wrong. But you also can't let it get to you, the moment you do that you lose." The corporal finished his smoke, tossing the butt away into some nearby bushes."

Itami sighed. "I wish I could be like you guys, I feel almost weak for all of this. I should be focusing on my job, like you guys."

Wilkes shook his head. "My mans, you don't want to be like us."

"What? You guys seem alright to me."

"No we're not, we're _**really** _ not man." Kincaid took a step forward and put a hand on Itami's shoulder. "You _**really**_ don't want to be like us."

The lieutenant stood there confused for a moment, all he had ever seen were smiles and cock sure attitudes. Seeing the two Marines like this for the first time in months, it baffled the lieutenant.

Made him realize just how much he didn't understand these men.

"You see, if anything we envy you. You have brakes, you can avoid temptation. Us? We're the worst America's got to offer, only we harness that bad and put it towards good. We're the closest thing to living cavemen, what you think we're not in pain twenty four seven?"

Kincaid shook his head. "Not a day goes by where we don't want to quit this shit and get the fuck out, but it's like. We hate this shit and love it at the same time, like we just feed off the negativity."

Wilkes nodded in agreement. "You're lucky my mans. You were still fresh before this, we went on our first deployment angry as fuck and we came back even angrier. Be thankful this is your first deployment, hero shit all around. If you think we wouldn't rather be home right now you're high."

The loader paused before shaking his head. "As for temptation? You don't know the half of it."

Itami removed Kincaid's hand and folded his arms. "But I don't understand, this is good work. We're helping these people, making a difference. You should be excited, proud."

Kincaid shook his head. "Nobody said we're not, but it's like." The corporal sighed. "I can't really explain it to you man, you just gotta be us and do what we've done to understand. You think being a tanker is all fun? You should try it sometime, be cramped inside a metal box for hours. Try working on track or busting your joints up doing maintenance. Our bodies and souls are tethered to those things to the day we get out."

"You're done when the tank says you're done. All that shit we do? The stupid shit? That's a coping mechanism my mans, we're a hurting ass bunch of people." Wilkes mumbled.

"Yeah, and the tank says we're not done yet. So no rest for the wicked. As for you and Risa?" Kincaid smiled. "We'll do everything we can to make sure you get back home safe to her. I mean, so long as we're both outside the wire. Everything else is on you man."

Wilkes nodded, the heavyset loader giving a thumbs up. "You're good people's Itami, I respect that. There ain't a fuck ton of people I say that to either, so you let that sink in my mans."

The Japanese lieutenant stood there confused, but content. There was a good chance he'd never understand these men, never figure out why they acted the way they did. He could still respect them though, respect their mental fortitude. "Thanks, it feels good to let this all out. I needed this, I really fucking needed this."

"Shit, you know. Misery loves company." Kincaid chuckled.

Suddenly another door slowly slid open, Shino's head sticking out and looking at the group of men for a few moments before smirking. "Well, I hope I wasn't interrupting some sort of moment." Suddenly her eyes went wide as she pointed at Wilkes. "But I need that one, he owes me."

Itami's looked at Kincaid with a look of disbelief. First his medic, now another one of his troops. The lieutenant wasn't really sure what to feel as Wilkes grumbled.

"Yeah, yeah I'm coming." The loader looked at Kincaid and Itami before waving. "Well, I'll see ya'll later." With that, he slowly made his way to the door and an excited Shino, promptly vanishing from view as the door slid back behind him.

Itami and Kincaid stood there for a few moments. Everything had been so deep up until that point, seeing Shino yank Wilkes along like a dog had completely killed the mood.

"Him too?"

"Yep."

"Well, that's."

"I told you, you don't wanna be like us."

"Well, it's not _**that**_ bad."

"You're the first officer I've met who's cool with the idea of his troops being fucked by guys from another unit he's working with. Just being honest."

"Well, as long as it doesn't interfere with the mission."

"Don't think it will, at least I hope not."

 _Mari isn't going to just let this pass._

Itami raised an eyebrow. "Well, what about you and Kurokawa? Look, I know you were giving that Medusa a look over at Italica. I mean, once we go back through the gate-"

"It's business, look I know. Can we please drop that shit? I'm going to take care of it alright? I've been through worse." Kincaid folded his arms and shook his head. "Look, lets just go back through. This visit was too much of a cock tease, we're nowhere close to being free."

"You know, I'm not mad at you. I'm a little, taken aback I guess, but this is all new to me. Just." The lieutenant shook his head. "I don't know Jasper, perhaps you're right. Let's just get through the gate, back to the grind tomorrow right?"

"Yeah, back to the grind." Kincaid looked at his watch and sighed. "Look, I'm gonna head back inside. Might as well try to rest my eyes."

Itami nodded. "Yeah, me too soon. Provided Rory doesn't catch me."

As Kincaid made his way back to his door, he paused. "Hey Itami, have you actually talked to Risa much since we've been back?"

Itami looked down in shame. "No, not really."

"Well, you might want to do that. Tonight if she's still up or tomorrow before we go back through. You only get so many chances with women man, take it from someone who knows best. Give her something to hold onto while you're away, otherwise the deployment will destroy what little you might still have."

Itami raised an eyebrow. "Jasper, have you ever had your job force your relationships into separation?"

Kincaid's hand was resting on the door, his gaze burning into the wood. "Yeah."

"How many?"

"Too many to count, I didn't get the luxury of a quick drive through a gate to see them. Or being stuck in the same zip code for that matter."

With that he opened the door and disappeared into his room as it closed behind him.

Itami stood there alone for a few moments, enjoying the cool night air of his home country before sighing.

"You're not the only ones who have things bottled up Jasper..."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Took you long enough."

"Well, Wilkes and Itami were outside. We were just talking."

Kincaid chuckled as he sat next to the side of the tatami mat, slowly stripping down to his boxers. "Or were you just that anxious to see me again?"

No response.

"Mari?"

"I heard you."

Kincaid looked over his shoulder and groaned. His phone was on the mat, she had seen the wallpaper.

"Okay, is there a particular reason why my phone is over there?"

"It was laying out on the floor, I was cleaning the room up a bit." Kurokawa paused before folding her arms. "Is there a particular reason why that _**thing**_ is on your phone screen?"

Kincaid had shifted around to look at the pissed off medic, his own anger slowly starting to rise. He knew this was coming, saw it from a mile away. He was just too drunk to control the urge in his pants.

"Thing? Uh Mari, that's a she. That's kind of disrespectful don't you think? And why does it matter? It's just a photo. I took that before you told me everything about her."

"Okay? Well now that you know that, you can take her off."

"I don't see what the problem is. Excuse me if I've been kinda preoccupied with everything else going on, swapping a phone wallpaper is kind of last on my to do list."

Kurokawa scoffed. "Well you got time now."

Kincaid rolled his eyes, he'd been down this road before. He could keep arguing with her and not get any sleep, or just bite his tongue and let her win. It boiled down to a simple choice, sleep outside or sleep on the mat.

"Alright, alright."

Kincaid slid onto the mat and next to Kurokawa, making sure to show her every step as he took the photo and replaced it with a stock background. Once that was done he set the phone down.

"Happy?"

"Yes."

Kincaid grumbled before relaxing.

"It's for your own good Jasper."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Are you just saying that to get me to shutup?"

 _Possibly_

"No, you're right. It was pretty fucking goofball of me. Wasn't thinking right you know?"

Kurokawa gave a small sigh of content, securing her hold on what was she believed was rightfully hers. "Anyways, enough on that. Let's get some sleep Jasper, we have a long day tomorrow."

"Yeah."

The pair lay there for a few moments, Kincaid staring at the ceiling for a few moments before he felt the covers shuffle.

"Jasper?"

"What's up?"

Kurokawa shifted over towards the Marine, resting her head on his shoulder once she got situated. "So we're really going back tomorrow."

"Yeah, back to work."

"This all felt so, bittersweet. Being home like this, we're so close yet it feels like we're so far away."

Kincaid blew some air out between his lips. "Yeah, the gate being there and all. Yet it's a completely different world, might as well be a universe away. Think about it like this though, you guys go through that gate and you're home. Us?"

The corporal paused before sighing. "We got the gate and Japan between us and home. I mean, if you really want to get technical about it we also have all of United States between us and the east coast. Factor in having to move the tanks back with us."

He grumbled. "Shit, I don't even want to think about that."

"When you put it like that, I won't lie Jasper. I can't help but feel bad for all of you."

"Don't, we signed the contract. We knew what we were signing up for, hell I chose to be a tanker. I knew damn well what the hell I was getting into, my dad warned me you know? Told me damn near a thousand times to not choose this MOS."

Kurokawa shifted her head up Kincaid's shoulder some more, slowly draping an arm across his chest as she did so. "I'm not surprised, bull headed boy." She paused. "Do you regret it? Being a tanker that is?"

Kincaid slowly looked over at the medic, staring for a few moments before looking back up at the ceiling. "Nope, all the pain, all the experiences. I don't regret any of it."

"Really? Any of it?"

"Not a damn thing. You can't appreciate the good things in life until you've put yourself through the bad things. When you're sitting in that tank for hours at a time with your crew, you really learn a lot about yourself you know? Inside the tank, rank comes off, all the real comes out. You gotta rely on the other guys and they rely on you. That tank is home, it's your own little personal piece of the pie you know? You gotta take charge, take control. It's like, we love it and hate it at the same time."

Kurokawa lay there silently for a few moments, trying to process it all for a few minutes as she imagined being inside the tank. The cramped interior, the loud noises and stuffy smell.

The smell of death.

"You confuse me Jasper Kincaid, all of you do. From the moment I met you and the other Marines, I haven't been able to put a finger on it. It's like there's this wall I can't climb."

"Good."

"What?"

"You're not supposed to understand. You gotta be one of us to understand us, no offense but you're only gonna make your head spin if you keep trying."

"Well, how am I going to ever help you if you don't help me understand?"

"Mari, you don't have to help me. Listen." Kincaid sighed. "I've got the guys to help me with that, I'm fine all things considered. All you gotta do is just sit on the side and watch. Accept us for who we are and leave it at that."

"Well that's not how I operate Jasper. You're not alright, I know people, know how they work. You need help and I can help you, besides."

The medic traced a finger along Kincaid's chest in a swirling motion. "I don't sleep with random men, I don't intend for us to just part ways after this. I'd like to talk more, really get to know you. Today was fun, all of it. It's been a while since I've done all of that."

"And you call me stubborn."

"Am I wrong for that?" Kurokawa lifted herself up, looking down at Kincaid with a look of concern. "You weren't going to just do all this and drop off the map were you?"

Kincaid's face twisted into a look of disbelief. "No, of course not."

 _Liar._

"Look, you need someone to take care of you. Having night terrors doesn't count as 'being alright' Jasper. You need a shoulder to lean on, I can be that shoulder." Kurokawa slowly lowered herself back to original place, meanwhile Kincaid sighed.

"Well, once we go back through the gate we gotta stay focused. I mean, we can't let this affect our performance."

"And why would it?"

"I'm just saying, maybe we should take it easy while we're over there? Just kinda keep the mood but keep it in the back you know? When we get the time we hang out, but nothing too crazy you know?"

Kurokawa's face twisted into one of abject disbelief. "Jasper, we just had sex. You don't do that and 'keep it in the back'."

 _Don't ever come to the states then. Better yet, don't ever learn about my past experiences._

"I'm not saying that, but we're gonna be off in different places. Once we go back, I'm back to doing tanker things. You'll be doing medic things, we'll be busy. Can't really date in a warzone."

 _So then what the hell did I think was gonna happen with Aurea?_

"I suppose you're right, but we'll do something. We'll keep in touch somehow I don't know. I like this Jasper, I like you. You're different than the men I've met before, you're unique. You've got so much to say and it just interests me. Your personality is just, it draws me in." Kurokawa cocked her head to the side. "You _**do**_ like me right?"

 _I don't know a damn thing about you though. I don't even know why you enlisted or anything about your family. I don't even know anything about Aurea though, and she doesn't know jack shit about me. Goddamnit Wilkes.  
_

Kincaid nodded. "Yeah, you're cool people Mari. Today was fun, it was a taste of normal for once you know? I could see this going somewhere, when this campaign is over." He paused before looking over at her. "I mean, you understand I gotta go back to the States at some point right? Go to college and pick my life back up."

 _I'm being so rational here trying to cover my own ass. I have a gate between where Aurea and I live, a whole god damn different dimension and Japan to boot. Like, who the fuck am I kidding? I'm in the wrong no matter what.  
_

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. One thing at a time." Kurokawa smirked. "Like this, where are right now. Let's focus on this for right now."

"Yeah, let's do that."

 _Yeah, normalcy. Focus on this man, just focus on this. When we get back, focus on the normalcy. Maybe I can just ignore Aurea? Maybe I won't have to see her. Can't be tempted if there's no temptation. Everything will be good when we get back., just get through this and put some distance between Mari and I.  
_

Kincaid slowly extended an arm over towards his phone. In moments the room illuminated as he began to slide his fingers over the screen. Kurokawa's face scrunched up to keep the light out.

"Jasper what're you doing?"

The corporal remained silent for a few moments until he finally found whatever it was he was looking for. In moments a song began to play from his phone, as he clicked the screen off and turned the volume down a bit, he smiled.

"You said focus on this for right now."

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 28: Drake "Too Much (feat. Sampha)"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

"You're such a dork."

"You like it though."

"You're right, I do."

 _You really shouldn't though._

In moments the two troops' bodies were intertwined once more as they absorbed themselves in the moment.

 _Don't think about it too much, too much, too much._

 _There's no need for us to rush it through_ _Don't think about it too much, too much, too much, too much._

 _This is more than just a new lust for you._

* * *

 **1500 HOURS,WASHINGTON D.C., WHITE HOUSE, OVAL OFFICE  
**

It had only been a day since the Diet, and already gears were turning in the international community. President Obama sat on his chair in the Oval Office, his desk surrounded by TV screens and officials from his cabinet. Hushed whispers went back and forth between the suit-dressed men, while a live broadcast of the United Nations played through the screens.

At first, the world's leaders had underestimated the gravity of the Gate; the 'terrorist' attack perpetrated by the Empire only adding to the long list of bombings and murders. But the diet changed that. Not a minute after it was over, the president got a call from the Secretary General of the UN himself.

The Security Council was having an emergency meeting. Which, of course, could only mean one thing. More red tape.

Thankfully, the American people were supportive of the operation. The revelations from the Diet triggered an immediate boost of support, news channels and social media exploding with discussions and theories about what to do. This came at the perfect time, too, with the presidential elections mere months away. In the eyes of the voters, America was finally going through the right path, and if the cards were played right, the reelection would be right around the corner.

It was a good feeling for the Commander in Chief. If all went as planned, his position in office was secured.

But, of course, not everything was so simple. The President averted his eyes from the screens, lowering the volume with a remote before turning to his cabinet members.

"Something wrong?" Vice President Joseph Biden raised an eyebrow at Obama, several of the other men doing the same. The President sighed and shook his head.

"All these formalities and salutations. Sometimes I wish they'd just start the discussions and get to the point."

The elderly Vice President fixed his glasses before folding his arms. "Well, it is the United Nations. There's a process to it all."

"I understand that Joseph, but time is something we don't have right now. Every minute we sit here is another moment the situation both inside and outside the gate moves far left or far right."

Several other cabinet members nodded in agreement as the President continued. "If things weren't dicey before, they sure as hell are now. We've got the rest of NATO trying to get a piece of the action, and as much as I'd like to have them along I think we can all agree that Japan won't allow that."

Biden nodded. "Or Russia and China for that matter."

"Exactly."

"Well, we can't argue that do we need assistance. Perhaps they'll be let in with the Peacekeepers? _**Under the banner of the U.N.**_?"

"Nonsense, nobody is **_that_** daft. The other powers will wise up to that tactic quick fast and in a hurry. If NATO wants anything they're going to have to wait and be content with what we can feed them. If any peacekeepers come in, they're going to be handpicked based off what the U.N. agrees on, you can count on that."

Obama rubbed his forehead. "We still have China acting up in the South China sea. The situation in Syria and Europe is getting worse daily and Russia's still pretty damn pissed off at us for the sanctions over Ukraine. France is still suffering from the terrorist attacks in Paris."

"God help em."

"Amen." Obama paused a moment, reflecting on the suffering France had endured. Since those attacks they were more concerned about joining in the bombings against ISIS than the gate itself. They had already began sending jets and coordinating air strikes.

With a great vengeance no less.

Obama sighed before continuing. "Then we got the damn Turks thinking it was real smart to shoot a Russian bomber down. God damn Erdogan."

Biden raised a finger. "If I may? We can't get too involved in Syria and you know that. Special forces over there or not, continuing to help the rebels is all we _**can**_ do. Unless you want a shooting war with Russia. As for Turkey. Well, NATO or not, Erdogan is a loose cannon and you know it. I'm pretty sure the rest of NATO doesn't want to get bogged down over the actions of one madman." The Vice President sighed. "As for the sanctions in Ukraine, you and I both know the Russians brought it on themselves. Everyone signed off on that."

"Please Joseph, you and I know damn well they see us as the sole perpetrators behind the sanctions. The goddamn Ukrainians aren't helping either, looks like they're taking a tool from Erdogan's toolbag and trying to agitate the Russians."

"Probably because they know the EU wil-"

"Cut to the chase Joseph, they know the international community will pressure us into helping them. The EU isn't going to be the ones who pull their asses out of the fire, it'll be us and any other NATO members. Both Turkey _**and**_ Ukraine."

The Vice President nodded. "No argument there."

Both men remained quiet for a few moments, the rest of the cabinet exchanging glances unsure of what to say.

"You know the what the core problem is behind all of this right?"

"Barrack?"

Obama sighed before taking a sip from his coffee mug. "Resources. Regardless of what kind of magic that world uses, how many species it has, how colorful the people's hair is? The resources are what's on everyone's minds. If the Special Region was a blasted dust ball nobody would care and you know it."

"Which is why we're still there with Japan?"

The President scoffed. "You're starting to sound like those conspiracy theorists on the online forums. No, best put that notion far behind you."

Biden stood there confused for a few moments, a few of the other cabinet members doing the same. Resources weren't on the table? At all?

"You see Joseph, that gate could close at any time. What sort of sane minded company would send the machinery through knowing damn well they have no idea if they'll be able to secure what they mine? No, the only way we're getting anything out of there is through fair trade agreements."

"And the only way we're doing that is by stabilizing the region."

"Yes and let's not forget." Obama shook his head. "We have to be good with the Japanese too, or did we all forget they consider that entire world an extension of their own territory?"

"The UN isn't actually allowing them to do that are they?"

"No, but so long as they hold the only entrance to that world? Nobody is going in without their say so, we got lucky Joseph. Real lucky, and now that we're in we can keep an eye on them. We're too big and too influential in the world to be pulling something slick like what they did. That'd be nothing short of political suicide."

"Which is why we're trying to bring the UN in?"

"Precisely. With the U.N. in there we can help ease the tension of the international community being left in the dark. It shows we're willing to cooperate. Besides, it might do that world some good. Teachers, doctors, peacekeepers, it'll help free our hands up and bring the two worlds together. There's a great deal more we can get out of there besides resources Joseph, the sky is the limit."

"What about the Japanese? Do you think they'll agree to this?"

Obama smirked. "Not unless they want to become public enemy number one. Besides, how much say do they have over us or anyone else? They're not even members of the security council. Their territory or not, this gate can turn out to be a world issue if not handled correctly."

Biden nodded. "Well then let's hope the Council meeting goes as planned."

Before the conversation could continue, one of the cabinet members cleared his throat. "Mister President? Ban Ki-moon is about to speak."

Obama nodded before promptly picking up a remote and turning the volume back up. "Well then, let's see what he has to say. Time to make history gentlemen."

All the officials remained quiet as they watched the elderly South Korean U.N. Secretary General begin his speech.

 _"Your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, members of the council. I thank you all for attending this Security Council meeting on such short notice. As it was revealed to the International Community during the Japanese National Diet conference, the situation in the Japanese Special Region is more than alarming. Genocide, blatant human rights violations, and slavery appear to be commonplace in this new world, and it is the duty of this council, formed by peace loving nations, to take action._

 _The land across the Gate is very different from our own. There are no civil rights, no educational institutions or true freedom for it's inhabitants. In the alarming revelations given during the Diet conference, refugees spoke of racial cleansing, tribal wars between many actors, with no sense of true, modern organization. That is why the United Nations must act, and bring the banner of civilization, freedom, justice and equality to the people of the Special Region._

 _Earlier this morning I had a phone call with the President of the United States. As we are all aware of, the American government, together with the Japanese, are leading a military expedition in this new world. However, it was made clear that they cannot do it alone. In this phone call, the American President and I came to an agreement, one which, I hope, this council will also agree to._

 _The Japanese-American coalition has called for our help, and it is in our best interest, as peaceful nations of the free world, to assist them. The inhabitants of the Special Region, human or otherwise, all have the same rights we do. That is why, on behalf of the American government, the secretariat prepared a draft resolution for this council to oversee. The stabilization of the Special Region is paramount for peace to be achieved, and for the people to receive the help they need._

 _On your desks you will find a written copy of this draft resolution. I sincerely hope all members of this council take it to serious consideration. The time to act is upon us. It is our duty, as the free nations of the world, to do so. Thank you."_

As the UN delegations began, Obama and the rest of the cabinet remained silent for a few moments.

"Well, I'm sold." The President chuckled as he took another sip from his mug prompting many of the other officials to do the same. Suddenly a woman's voice came through a small speaker on his desk.

"Mister President? The Joint Chiefs of Staff are here."

Obama nodded before looking at the rest of his cabinet. "Right, gentlemen if you would excuse me. I need to clear the room up a bit, monitor the council meeting and keep me informed as things commence. If someone so much as makes a funny face, let me know."

The rest of the officials nodded, Biden grabbing his suit jacket from a nearby coat hangar and following them.

Obama raised an eyebrow. "What, military talk too much for you?"

The elderly Vice President rolled his eyes. "Something like that."

"Well, go right ahead old man."

"You're not too far behind yourself."

Both men chuckled as Biden left with the cabinet. No sooner had the officials left, a new group came filing into the room. Unlike the men before them, these officials were garbed in a different uniform. Each a high ranking officer from one of the many service branches; Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force all present and accounted for.

"Mister President."

"Gentlemen, good to see you. Have a seat."

Each of the officers took a seat in the spots previously held by the former occupants. Once everyone was situated, Obama folded his hands.

"Gentlemen? What do we have?"

A Navy Admiral was the first to lean in and speak up. "Mister President, the Seventh Fleet and our patrols in the South China Sea are in good form and maintaining their current positions. So far the Chinese are staying in their territory without any signs of aggressive action. They seem content to be working on their artificial islands. As for the Pacific, everything is business as usual unless something goes high and to the right with the gate."

"Anything of note regarding those Chinese artificial islands?"

"Aerial reconnaissance suggests they're building radar towers and runways. Sir, they are definitely attempting to project their capabilities."

Obama shook his head. "Christ, well maintain our current positions. Hopefully the talks between the Asian powers resolve themselves."

 _Doubtful._

The admiral nodded as one of the other chiefs of staff leaned in to say his piece, Army this time. "Mister President the situation in Ukraine seems to be quiet for now, but all the same we should look into reinforcing the Baltic states. Our exercises thus far have done a good job in bolstering confidence in our Western European allies, but there's still a matter of those near the Russian border.

Obama nodded. "We'll look into that, any recommendations?"

"Yes sir, the employment of more heavy armor. Should the Russians come steam rolling through, we don't have enough heavy assets to mount enough of a defense."

"Right then, if we can spare the material without spooking the Russians we'll see what we can do." He paused. "Then again it doesn't take much to rustle them up does it?"

Some chuckles.

"Yes sir."

Next came the Air Force general. "Mister President our wings remain in good standing and are ready to assist anytime anywhere. Our F-35's should be arriving mid to late this year."

"For all the yammering I hear about them they damn well better be shooting lasers out of their cockpits. Let's not forget the price tag."

"With the flight results we've been getting so far, they might as well sir."

"I'm sure they will general, nothing but the best for our boys. How about our F-22s?"

"Performing well sir, having their production resumed only helps our air power. Many of our allies are thankful knowing there's never a wing too far away. The Iranians learned their lesson, guessing the Russians aren't trying to tempt fate either. We've already dissuaded them from flying into any territory the rebels or our SOGs are operating in."

It was a well known and often frequently discussed story in which a flight of F-22s had discouraged the Iranian air force from shooting down anymore U.S. operated drones. The jets had actually been able to sneak up on a flight of Iranian Phantoms. The Iranians only knew the jets were there once one of the pilots had explicitly told them where to look.

Which was right above them in this case, a show of force if anything. The F-22s could have killed both the Phantoms from miles away without so much as second thought.

Obama couldn't help but smirk at the thought. With F-35 variants en route for the Air force, Navy and Marine Corps. America's ability to have VTOL capable fifth generation stealth fighters anywhere would be a definite boon in the coming years. If that wasn't enough, there were plenty of allies both NATO and otherwise who had expressed interest in buying them.

Finally came the Marine general and chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Joseph Dunford or "Fighting Joe" as he was nicknamed. This had been the man Obama had wanted to speak to the most.

The hawkish Marine adjusted his service Alphas before clearing his throat. "Mister President? Thus far the campaign in the Special Region has been an overwhelming success. We've just recently established a presence in one of the largest trading hubs in the region and are currently in the process of establishing good relations with the ruling family."

Obama nodded. "Outstanding general, casualties?"

"None so far sir, thank god."

"Agreed and the Japanese?"

"So far they've been adhering to their constitution. This means we have to do a majority of the heavy lifting, we push forward and they move in behind us. This way they can avoid any political backlash, they are a self defense force after all. The goal is to continue to push up towards the capital, establishing FOBs at key locations along the way."

"Good, have we learned anything new?"

"Yes sir." got up and made his way over towards the president's desk, dropping a small manila envelope. As Obama opened it, he was greeted with maps and photos. Most of the photos were of a medieval city, but it was the last three that caught his eye.

The first one was a thermal image of what looked to be a dragon, Obama raising an eyebrow at it. Sure enough, it was missing an arm and looked worse for wear with various signs of battle damage all over its body. He could just barely make out a jet banking over the beast, the creature looking up in what almost looked an expression of confusion.

"I'm guessing this is the dragon everyone's been talking about?"

nodded. "Yes sir, that image was taken a few days ago. A flight of our Harriers engaged it before it could attack a small village."

"Good to know, I'm taking it they didn't kill it?"

"No sir, but they were able to scare it off. We're learning now that standard anti air missiles won't cut through its hide."

Obama put the photo down and rubbed his forehead in frustration, another problem to add to the growing list. "Guess that confirms the flying tank intel. Tell me, do we know where it is now?"

The general shook his head with a grim, almost disappointed, face. "No sir, it's been hiding since."

"Hiding?"

"Yes sir, looks like it learned its lesson trying to fight us the first two times."

Obama sighed. "Regardless, we need that thing dead."

The Air force general cleared his throat. "Mister President? If it's a tank, we have just the planes cut out for that task. We do have twenty five A-10's stationed in South Korea with the Twenty-Fifth Fighter Squadron."

Obama put a finger under his chin and glanced at . "What do you think general? How many you need?"

The general's face twisted into a smirk. "A chance to have the hogs with us? I'd never turn down that firepower. Four would be a godsend."

"Perfect." Obama glanced at the Air force general. "General Prescott, how long will it take you to send em?"

"As soon as you need them sir." Prescott paused. "And as soon as the Japanese clear them to come in."

Obama chuckled. "Don't you worry about that. Regardless that settles that problem." The President glanced back at the photos and paused at another one that caught his eye. This time it was an elderly man in regal attire, a small crown on his head. He stood atop an ornate balcony with his arms outstretched in front a crowd of citizens.

adjusted his uniform. "Mister President, that photo was taken by SEAL Team Six. They've been operating in the capital with Japanese operators for a while now. That man is Emperor Molt Sol Augustus, he's the current leader of the Empire."

"Well, at least we know who declared war on us."

"Yes. While the first attack at Ginza was comprised solely of Imperial regulars, the subsequent attack at Alnus was also comprised of armies from their Vassal states. The Imperials led the first wave, all the other waves after that were solely made up from other kingdoms."

Obama put the photos down and looked up at the General. "So what you're telling me is that he sent his allies to die?"

"Yes sir, we believe he may have done this in order to prevent further losses on their behalf as well cut off any potential alliances they could forge with us. His forces have been held up at the capital ever since. As for the siege of Italica, those were bandits that were former members of the allied kingdoms' armies. There was also a firefight that broke out in a village called Burglen, we believe that the enemy there was also comprised of former members from the other armies."

"All aboard the sinking ship. Guess the Empire didn't want to take the beatings alone."

nodded. "Looks that way sir. Currently the Empire rules over the continent we know now as Falmart, with Sadera being the Capital. We understand that the Imperial family is comprised of Molt, princess Piña and two other sons."

"And I'm guessing we don't know who they are?"

"The sons? Currently no, but Kane assured me he'll keep us informed as soon as he gets the intel. As for Piña, so far it seems as though she's all for the idea of coming to some sort of compromise."

Obama nodded. "Good to know one of them is sane. Regardless, we need that information , keep me informed as soon we know." The president paused as he looked at the last photo, it was Rory Mercury. Obama remembered her spectacle at the Diet, and while it amused him he still couldn't help but be unnerved at the girl all the same. She stood atop one of the tanks inside Italica, her halberd covered in crimson as she winked at whoever took the photo.

"So this Rory Mercury, what's her angle?" Suddenly he paused as an email alert popped up on one of the many computer screens on his desk. As he clicked through various folders and typed a number of passwords, he paused before glancing at .

"General? I have an email here that says 'Rory Mercury Italica fight'. I'm guessing this is something that'll explain her 'angle?'"

"Yes sir."

"Right then, might as well play the home movie for everyone."

Obama pressed a number of keys and picked up a remote from his desk, thumbing a small button on it. Suddenly, one of the many televisions began playing the file that was attached to the email.

 _Jesus christ Jay-Kay, are they going through the fucking gate?!_

 _No, they're gonna fucking knock!  
_

The footage was obviously from a helmet cam, the owner in question currently behind the wheel of an armored truck. In the bottom right corner of the footage, a small time stamp accompanied the name Emerson.

It was nighttime and pitch black, the only illumination coming from gunfire and various other fires off in the distance. It looked like hell itself and all the men present could see that the truck was following two tanks going full speed towards a large wooden gate built into a stone wall.

In moments the two tanks crashed through the gate, the large wooden doors disappearing in a cloud of smoke and wood splinters. Obama and everyone else were almost certain they saw men get sucked under tank tracks or scattered aside like leaves.

 _Ah fuck!_

 _Stop the belly aching Nutt, you wanted action you fucking got it!_

All the men watching the footage jumped a little as the truck swerved into a position between the tanks.

 _Masterson stay on the Deuce! The rest of you, out!_

 _Rah!_

In moments, Emerson thumbed the safety off for his carbine and piled out of the door. Not long after he slammed the door shut he was already letting rounds off at a seemingly never ending number of medieval troops. Every so often the camera would pan just enough to capture the tanks, a sight no less grisly from everything else shown so far. Both vehicles' turrets swung every which way as all their machineguns opened up. Men fell from atop walls like flies being swatted, torsos were torn in half like a buzz saw cutting through wood. It was chaos, but amidst all of it there was one noise that seemed to carry over all the others.

The sound of Rory laughing.

Suddenly the camera panned over, almost freezing in place at what happened next.

Rory had hopped off one of the tanks and had joined the fight in earnest. Everywhere she went she laughed, limbs flew every which way and dust clouds kicked up where she bounded to. It wasn't so much what she was doing, but how fast she was doing it. The girl moved like a blur, faster than any normal human was capable of moving.

 _Cover Rory!_

 _Excuse me!? Jay Kay, are you seeing this?!  
_

 _Yes I'm fucking seeing it, and I don't give a rat's fuck!_

The footage continued to play. The longer the battle dragged on, the more carnal it got. By halfway through, one of the tank crews had piled out of their vehicle and had begun to use their small arms.

They had expended all of their small arms and the area was too confined to use main gun.

Upon closer examination it was the same crew that was present at the Diet. Before Obama and the others could see how the crew handled themselves the camera was jerked over and face to face with a man running forward swinging an axe.

Whatever the man was hoping to accomplish was promptly shut down as Emerson brought his carbine up and dropped the man with robotic precision.

 _Fuck you!_

Throughout the rest of the footage and all the way to the helicopters arriving, Obama remained silent and wide eyed. Alnus had been one thing, nothing more than footage of gunfire racing towards a mass of enemies in the distance. This footage, was an entirely different matter. It was close, personal, and brutal. Obama was no stranger to war but this was something entirely different.

This was a slaughter house.

"Alright, I think I understand now." Obama shook his head before turning the footage off and looking back at . "So, she's obviously not exactly.."

"Human sir?"

"Not if she's nine hundred years old no. So, what are her intentions?"

"We're not sure at this time sir, but she seems particularly fond of both Lieutenant Itami and our tankers over there."

"Any particular reason why?"

"If our intel is correct, she serves a god that represents war and bloodshed. So there's that."

"Right." Obama sighed. "Are we keeping tabs on her?"

nodded. "Yes sir, Lieutenant Emerson has been tasked with the rest of his raiders to keep eyes on her. The one who recorded this footage."

"Good, and do we have contingencies in case she goes rogue?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, then that's that. If she puts any of our men in danger you put her down without hesitation."

"Of course."

Obama brought his hands together. "Then that settles that, now then general back to the campaign. According to what Miss Lalena said at the Diet, magic does indeed exist in this world. So my next question is this, is this something that our forces need to be concerned with?"

All of generals sat intently, waiting to hear what had to say next. Magic had naturally been the biggest topic of various hushed discussions in the highest echelons. It had all been rumors and scattered reports up till now, noone had actually believed something as outlandish as magic even existed. As far as the brass were concerned, there was a scientific explanation for the gate opening as well as everything else. Once Lelei had confirmed these rumors as being true nobody was sure what to say next.

"Mister president, while we do know that magic does indeed exist. We have been led to believe that it's a 'lost art'."

"'Lost art'?"

"Yes, apparently very few individuals such as Miss Lalena herself are capable of actually putting it to any use. Even still, it's not potent enough to be weaponized to any real extent."

"Define what you mean by, 'any real extent' general."

"Thus far based off reports from Italica, a magic user was able to jam our communications inadvertently. This was before she had attempted to use a form of it against our troops, to no substantial effect. At best she was able to send up some small pressurized wind blasts, all those did was counteract explosive blast waves."

"She?"

"Yes, a Myuute Luna Sires. According to what information we've been able to gather she's a siren."

Obama shook his head in confusion. "A siren?"

tried to find the words to best describe what Myuute was, not human. "Yes, half bird half human."

"Right, and she's in our custody?"

"Yes, and very cooperative. Apparently she warmed up upon realizing we weren't going to execute her for being part of the siege. Kane has informed me he would send up any further information. Soon as they know we'll know and right now the big focus is figuring out how to prevent the jamming from happening again."

"Very well, the sooner the better General."

Suddenly one of the doors opened, Biden coming in and looking as though he had run up five flights of stairs.

"Barrack, they're starting the actual discussions."

Obama nodded before turning the volume up on one of the televisions. "Bout damn time."

* * *

 **HAKONE ONSEN, 0600 HOURS  
**

Aldritch rubbed the back of his head and sighed for a few moments, a concerned Piña sitting a few feet away from him. After a few hours of sleep plagued with stress filled dreams, Aldritch had decided a peaceful night's rest simply wasn't coming to him. Originally he had came outside to clear his head in hopes that it would help him go back to sleep easier.

A notion quickly squashed once Piña stumbled outside wide eyed. At some point Bozes had snuck out of their room and the confused princess had been looking for her ever since. Once Aldritch had informed her of the royal's whereabouts, the princess merely shook her head in embarrassment.

She was with Tomita.

Now the pair sat outside, neither able to sleep. Too much on their minds.

"Lieutenant?"

"Yes, your highness?"

"Do you think peace can exist? Tell me, do you think this war will be over soon?"

"You want my honest answer?"

"Yes."

Aldritch shook his head. "I don't know, I really don't. I'm just a tank commander princess, I command what's left of my rag tag company. All the big talks and big movements fall on shoulders much higher than mine. I don't have a say in any of it unless it concerns me and my men and even still."

Piña's face twisted into a frown as she brought her hands together. "But, you've been contributed in their efforts greatly. Surely that has to account for something?"

"It doesn't. My men and I might get a few promotions, some accolades, but that's it."

"But."

Aldritch sighed. "What happens next is on you. I've told you all I can, showed you our world and how my nation and Japan got to where they are now."

Piña looked off into the distance and closed her eyes before shaking her head. "It's, not that simple."

"Why's that? You're the one with a higher status, if there's anyone who's gonna help us out here it's you."

"That's just it." The princess stared at her interlocked fingers before looking at Aldritch, her expression only worsening with every minute. "You see, even as the Emperor's daughter. I don't."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow and folded his arms. "What do you mean? That doesn't make sense, you've been in our care for a while now. The next time you see him, he'll understand that we took care of one of his own. That's gotta account for something."

"It's not that."

"Well? Then what is it? Anything you pass along to me gets sent up to my superiors. If there's something important you want to let us know, I'm all ears."

"No, this is for your ears only." She paused before leaning forward, the look of pleading on her face clear as day "You must promise to tell this to noone."

For but a moment, the Aldritch caught himself admiring Piña. The way her hair was braided, her eyes and the delicate features on her face. He was never one to argue that she wasn't beautiful.

But she was also a high ranking figure and to even think of doing anything with her was idiotic. More importantly, she had direct connections with the enemy. There was no bonafide guarantee she was actually sympathetic towards the coalition's cause. It wouldn't be the first time someone had put on an act, a good one at that. Yet, a small part of Aldritch felt like just for once, military protocol could take a backseat. The sincerity in her eyes and the way she behaved, something in there had to be true.

So he did as she requested and a small part of him hoped he could keep the promise. He didn't like being a dishonest man.

"Alright, here." Aldritch slowly extended a hand with a smile, his pinky outstretched. "I pinky promise to keep this secret to myself."

Piña eyed the finger wide eyed for a few moments. "What manner of pact is this? A pinky promise?"

"Yes, it's one of the most timeless and important of promises. Only the worst dare to break it."

Piña glanced at the finger then back at Aldritch with the same dumbfounded expression. "I'm honored, but what do I do?"

Aldritch shook his head, his smile not fading. "Here, extend your pinky out."

Slowly but surely the princess did as instructed.

"Now wrap yours around mine."

Aldritch swore he saw the Princess's face turn almost as red as her hair for a second, but the princess wouldn't be deterred. Slowly but surely she wrapped hers around the lieutenant's.

"Okay, good." Aldritch let go of Piña's finger and nodded. "And that's it, nothing to it huh?"

Piña nodded. "For such a powerful pact to be established over something so simple of a gesture. I must say I'm taken aback."

"Yeah, we have some strange customs in this world. So anyways, what is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Right." Piña sighed as she prepared herself for what came next. "Regarding my position. My father Emperor Molt, he does not consider me next in line to take his place on the throne."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand. Why wouldn't he consider you next in line? Your his own flesh and blood."

Piña shook her head, her grim expression not changing. "I have two brothers, Diabo and Zorzal. Out of the three of us, I was born last." She paused, struggling to utter the next words. "I was also born to a concubine, a lowly one at that. It is because of this that my brothers hold a great deal more sway in my father's decisions. In fact it was Zorzal himself who personally led one of my father's legions against the warrior bunny tribes, with my father's own approval. Aldritch, my brother almost completely wiped out their race. He took their queen as a slave and she now resides at our palace."

Aldritch made a mental note of the last thing Piña had said. If there really was a queen enslaved by the Empire, rescuing her could prove useful to winning her peoples' hearts and minds. As for Zorzal, he would be public enemy number two.

Now to tend to the distraught princess, a task easier said than done. The lieutenant remained silent as Piña continued to talk.

"What do I get? Command of a group of inexperienced knights and even then my father humored me knowing full well they were ceremonial guard at best. Italica was their first fight and I already lost one of my own. We were undermanned and sent out by order of my father. Do you know why that is?"

"No.."

Piña looked into Aldritch's eyes, a tear beginning to creep down one of her own. "We were sent to spy on your forces Aldritch, my father sent us knowing full well what you were capable of. There were survivors from Alnus, their testimonies were no secret to our planners or my father. Yet he still sent us out, us Aldritch. Not my brothers, not any of our spies, us. I am not afraid to fight and die for my people, but to be ordered to spy on an enemy we can't even fight against? What manner of love is that? My loyalty is unwavering to both my people and my father, what did I do to deserve this?"

"Your highness.."

"I want to love my father, I want to stand by his side. But with everything that's gone on as of late, it's hard. I fear for my people Aldritch. I won't deny that we have stepped on a Griffon's tail, but surely we can turn things around?" Piña brought a hand up and tried to wipe her away her tears. "I just don't know what to do."

Aldritch sat there for a few moments, unsure of what to do. He couldn't really talk to the princess like a soldier, and he really wasn't sure how to talk to her as a fellow leader.

She was only nineteen.

For all intents and purposes, Piña was around the same age most Marines were when they hit the fleet. In another life, she'd just be entering college. She was young, inexperienced and filled with fear. So, Aldritch talked to her in a way he figured she'd understand. How a girl her age wanted to be talked to.

"Piña?" The lieutenant slowly extended a hand and rested it on the princess's shoulder. "You're strong, you know that?"

The princess looked at Aldritch confused for a few moments, the tears on her face slowly drying up. "What do you mean?"

"Everything you've gone through. You said you and your troops were undermanned at Italica right? How long did you aid in the defense?"

Piña sniffed. "A few days."

"Exactly, and then when we showed up you took charge. Piña, give yourself more credit. We may have saved Italica, but it was your cooperation with us that helped expedite that process. You then averted a potentially disastrous situation with Bozes and continued to show hospitality."

Aldritch began to smile. "Then you took a leap of faith and came with us back to Alnus. That's bravery Piña, that's the sort of thing the Marine Corps prides itself on. Bravery against all forms of adversity, standing steadfast against all odds."

Piña's sniffed, her expression not changing as the words began to hit deep. "Really?"

"Absolutely. Now look at you, you went through the gate and came to our world. Why? To learn more about us. So, if you think about it. You accomplished your mission, but you also accomplished something else. You singlehandedly bridged the gap between us and the Empire. Both you and Bozes came through as representatives for the Empire did you not? You were well mannered and professional were you not? That's good diplomacy Piña. Were it not for you, we'd probably still be in Falmart bogged down in god knows what."

 _Sort of, if push comes to shove we'd just thunder run the capital. Not a fun day for anyone._

"Look, I'm not sure what will happen from here on. But I do know this, if there's anyone who's going to help end this thing and bring about peace? It's gonna be you. Your people should be proud to have someone as dedicated as you."

Aldritch gave Piña's shoulder a pat. "So keep on pushing. If your father doesn't want to see reason, then what can you do? You've served faithfully and maybe even more than you should have. At the end of the day, that's what good leaders do. They take care of their subordinates and serve their people."

"And what if my father won't see reason?"

"Then, we'll take him off the throne and replace him with someone better suited to the task. Someone who can lead their people as well as see reason through diplomacy. Being a good leader is about more than just power, it's about using that position to better your people both at home and abroad. In our world the concept of tyrants is frowned upon, we have an entire community of different countries that work together."

Aldritch sighed and shook his head. He had been so busy trying to fill the young royal up with hope, he'd almost forgotten the reality of it all. "Piña I won't lie to you, your father is going to answer for what he's done regardless. Him and anyone else who orchestrated the attack on our world. Your cooperation helps us speed that process up without any further loss of life."

Piña sat there for a few moments as she tried to comprehend everything she had been told. There was still a long and uncertain road ahead, and while it had unnerved the princess initially. Aldritch's words had given her hope.

The praise had also made her smile more than once.

Piña looked at Aldritch with determination in her eyes. "You're right. I love my father, but it is because of that love that I will continue to try and make him see reason. I do not wish for my people to suffer any longer nor do I wish to see our capital razed to the ground as a result of a needless war that could've been easily halted earlier. I _ **will**_ continue to push forward and serve to the best of my abilities."

"That's the spirit." Aldritch removed his hand from Piña's shoulder and folded his arms. "Spoken like a real Devil Dog your highness."

"Devil Dog?"

"Yeah, that's a nickname we go by. One that goes back a long ways."

Piña couldn't help but chuckle. "Devil Dogs, if I may Aldritch. Your men certainly fight like devils and behave like dogs at times, so I suppose it's a name aptly given."

"We aim to please your highness."

"You do that and much more lieutenant." Piña smiled. "Seeing them interact with the others, my people. I can see the care in their eyes, the lengths they'll go to to help. When they're around, when _**you**_ are around, I can't help but feel safe. Itami and his troops are capable yes, but you? You're on a different level and I can feel this."

Aldritch tried his best to hide the creeping feeling of pride in his chest as he nodded. He also tried to hide the blush that was slowly forming on his face.

She did say she felt safe when _**he**_ was around.

"So long as we're over there, you have my word that the Four Horsemen will continue to aid in whatever way we can."

"Of this I have no doubt."

The pair went to being silent for a few moments as they reflected on everything that had been discussed.

"Aldritch?"

"Yes your highness?"

"Thank you, for everything up till now. Thank you for showing understanding at Italica and cooperating with us." Piña paused and smiled looked at the jacket she was wearing, the same one Aldritch had bought her. "And thank you for our visit here."

Aldritch nodded. "It was my pleasure your highness."

The princess smiled as she stared deeply into Aldritch's eyes. "Lieutenant? You can call me Piña, we are friends now. Equals both on and off the battlefield, even if you are more experienced than I am."

"Well then, if we're going that route. You can call me James and believe me, I'm no more experienced at war than you are."

Piña cocked her head to the side in curiosity. "Really?"

"Yep, this is my first time going to war. In fact, the only men in my platoon who have seen war are Kincaid, Wilkes and Elton. Everyone else is just as green as I am. I might know how to lead men, but I've never spilled blood prior to now."

"Well, then I suppose this a trial by fire for both of us. One we've both performed well in so far."

"Indeed."

Silence for a while longer.

"Piña?"

"Yes?"

"How's about I show you a little bit more about us? What makes us Marines, tankers. It's clear to me neither of us is getting anymore sleep." He gave a weary chuckle. "Might as well make the most of time."

Piña smiled. "Very well, but only if I get to teach you more about the Empire." She paused. "The good aspects that is."

"Fair enough." Aldritch took his phone and scrolled through some photos before pausing at one. He beckoned the princess over. "Here, take a look at this."

Piña inched over closer and closer till she was leaning on the lieutenant's shoulder, her eyes going wide at the picture displayed. A large group of Marines stood at parade rest in the middle of an assembly area. Piña could just barely make out fourteen tanks sitting behind the Marines in a coil. Unlike the tanks she had seen up till now, these ones were painted dark green with swirls of black and brown.

"That's a lot of tanks and a lot of men."

"That's how big our company used to be, see that man in the center? That's Captain Steele, he was our company commander before I had to step up and take his place."

"And there you are on his side. Is that Kincaid and the others?"

"Sure is, this was taken not long after they came to our company. They weren't always with us, they actually fought with another group of Marines."

"And what happened to that one?"

"They disbanded, much like ours is about to." Aldritch paused and looked at his watch. "Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure that might have just been put on hold with all of this going on."

Piña sat there wide eyed for a few moments. "Do you have more of these miniature paintings?"

"Sure do, and they're called photographs Piña."

For the rest of the time, the pair sat and discussed their representative troops and the history that went with them.

* * *

 **1600 HOURS,WASHINGTON D.C., WHITE HOUSE, OVAL OFFICE**

"Well then, that's that."

Obama turned the television off before reclining in his chair and dragging his hands down his exhausted face. The commander in chief sat there for a few moments as he thought about the discussions that had occurred and what that would entail for the rest of the campaign.

The UN delegations had been tense, but successful. It was now well understood by most that the U.S. Japanese coalition had the military situation under control, there simply wasn't anything the Empire could throw at them that posed a big enough threat. The same couldn't be said for the humanitarian aspect however. With the large regions of unexplored territory, the large amount of refugees filing into Alnus and the actual military campaign itself. The coalition's troops found themselves stretched thin.

The worry was that the troops, although well trained, weren't cut out for the large scale relief efforts necessary in ensuring the smooth transition. This was a campaign that required an approach equal both humanitarian and militarily. Teachers, doctors, scientists, and peacekeepers to maintain refugee areas. Those had been some of the key points discussed. This was an entirely different world with thousands of years worth of untouched culture and history. This was more than just a war, but an expedition of knowledge and discovery.

"A bridging between worlds." As it had been called. The coalition needed help from the international community if they wanted to stand any chance of ensuring an expedient end to the campaign.

Of course, the world of politics is never so easy.

Some countries were hard pressed to agree with the possibility of Japan and America embarking on some sort of imperialistic quest for resources. The other world had the potential to greatly increase the strength of both powers, and some representatives at the UN were nothing short of reluctant to aid in that potential outcome. Some countries flat out didn't care. Fantasy world or not, they still had Earth and all the problems that came with it to be far more concerned with. Others such as Russia and China were still on a razor's edge with all the political hot spots that had been erupting as of late. All they could see was more troops and material crowding up the Pacific.

Nobody was heartless enough to disagree that the civilians in the other world were in desperate need of support however. At least, not vocally.

So, after a long series of nail bitingly close agreements, the coalition got the help it had requested. This came had no short cost however and only after certain conditions were met. The coalition was not to send in any more heavy equipment or personnel that hadn't already be formed up to go through. UN peacekeepers themselves would hail from neutral countries, so as not to arouse suspicion of some sort of undercover NATO operation. Finally, once the region had been sufficiently stabilized, news teams would be allowed access through the gate. There were talks of scientists, but that had been largely pushed to the side due to time constraints.

"Mister President?"

"Barrack?

Obama snapped out of his haze and glanced at the rest of the men present in the room. The Joint Chiefs and Biden were still there.

There was still work to be done.

"Right." Obama sighed before picking up his mug, his face then promptly twisted into a frown as he eyed the porcelain vessel.

It was empty.

Biden merely rolled his eyes with a chuckle and swiped the mug out of Obama's hand. "I got you."

"Thanks."

"Yeah yeah."

As the Vice President left the the office, Obama looked over at . "General, how long is it going to be until the Third MEB goes through?"

"About two to three months sir. General Augustine is already en route to Alnus in order to conduct a meeting with key leaders."

"Right." Obama rubbed his forehead. "They were coming with a company of tanks correct?"

"Yes sir, though they haven't even been signed out or even prepped for transport yet."

"Great, that means they weren't officially documented. You heard what they said during the talks, we're not getting those tanks now."

"Understood sir, but that's going to leave our own armored capabilities limited even with our LAVs. The Japanese are regulating their tanks more towards defensive operations. There's word they're even sending some units back through the gate, their goal is to be left with about one to two companies."

"Plus our own platoon of four tanks?"

"Yes sir."

Obama groaned. "Necessity or not, more tanks would've been good. Regardless, that's where our next option comes in general."

"Sir?"

"I need you to get on the horn with Augustine or Kane, both preferably. Whatever they need I want you to compile a list and send it up, you've got a blank check general. New vests, retrofits for the tanks, any potential upgrades. We may not be able to send more materiel or men through, but that doesn't mean we can't improve on what we already have."

had already began to take notes in his binder as Obama looked over at Prescott. "General, I need you to get those A-10s through as soon as possible as well."

"Consider it done sir."

Obama scanned over the rest of the Joint Chiefs. "The rest of you, keep up the good work. We still have a world out here to contend with, I don't want our adversaries to think we've got our hands tied behind our backs. They may have won some talks over the gate, but they still have a game to win outside too."

All of the officers nodded as Obama returned the gesture in kind. "Right then. You're free to take your leave, have a good day gentlemen."

With that, all of the generals got up and stood at the position of attention before leaving the room.

"Well, the plot thickens." Obama groaned before getting up from his desk and looking out his window at the capital beyond. He smiled for a few moments as he took in the sight. Snow had began to fall, slowly blanketing the ground and the trees beyond with a white coat. Over the trees and distant buildings he could just barely make out the Washington Monument.

"Good things are coming for us."

 _I hope._

"Yeah, I suppose they are Barrack. Lord knows we're gonna need em this year."

"Don't remind me Joe...don't remind me."

Obama turned around and smiled as Biden came in with a fresh steaming mug of coffee. As the Vice President set the mug down on a nearby desk, he joined the President in looking out the window.

"Gonna be a long winter I'm thinking, and an even more eventful new year."

"By 'eventful' you mean stress filled. We need to hit some sort of satisfying conclusion to this conflict beyond the gate, we still have plenty of nasty business on this side we still need to take care of. If we don't wrap this conflict up quick the burdens' going to fall onto someone else."

Biden shook his head and sighed. "You mean whoever gets elected this next year? I don't even want to think about what Trump would do."

Obama chuckled. "Oh I don't think it'll come to that. **_The likelihood of him becoming president is non existent_** , the people of America know what they want, What they need. We'll help Hillary get where she needs to be."

"If you say so."

Obama took a sip from his mug before nodding. "I know so."

Things were quiet for a few moments before the president placed a finger under his chin and pondered for a few moments. "Would've been nice to have the Special Region guests come here, show them what a super power looks like."

"Perhaps when things cool down, maybe we can? Although, I'm sure the concept of a place even bigger than Japan would just make their heads spin."

"Yes, I suppose you're right. Say, perhaps I could visit them? Go to Alnus, it'd be good for troop morale. Besides, I've been wanting to see this world from beyond television screens."

"Oh and of course you'd just leave me here."

"I'd be sure to take photos, maybe bring you back a feathered hat?"

"Very funny."

The two men shared a laugh and continued to enjoy the sight beyond the window.

* * *

 **DECEMBER 15TH, 1000 HOURS, GATE DMZ, GINZA JAPAN.  
**

Once everyone had woken up to DS agents banging on doors and yelling around the Onsen. The rest of the morning had proceeded as planned, but not without its share of misery.

The packing and subsequent drive had been a quiet one. Nobody, not even Rory had anything to say. The entire trip everyone had known what the endstate would be, knowledge definitely not lost on the troops.

A short visit, a taste of freedom and learning. Then right back to the gate.

Back to war.

After hours of silence the group watched from behind windows as the Japanese countryside was slowly replaced by the city. Now they stood outside the gate, the bus ferrying them back waiting as its engine idled.

"Daddy, no go."

Elton scooped up his daughter, comforting her as he held her close. A teary eyed Samantha doing her best to compose herself as she stood by them.

"Shh, shh I know. Listen, daddy has to go back though, the bad men still need to get beat up before he can go home."

"No go!"

"Hey, hey now. What did daddy say before he left huh? You gotta be strong for him, strong for mommy too."

Abigail began to sniff as she buried her face in her father's shoulder. There was more she wanted to say, but her young mind and limited vocabulary denied her that. All she knew was that her father was going away again.

And for a child her age that was all she needed to know.

"Do you know how long you'll be gone for?" Samantha mumbled as she embraced her husband and daughter, her tears drying against Elton's jacket.

"No, I don't. Nobody does, this isn't like Afghanistan Sam. Until we reach whatever end state they want, we're staying there."

He paused to wrap an arm around his wife. "Listen I'll be able to write and probably call from time to time too. You're still going to get the money every month, hell, double what I normally make. Good combat pay you know?"

"I don't care about the money Parker, I care about you. You said things were dead, that you wouldn't be sent anywhere after Afghanistan. I turned a blind eye to Okinawa, but this?"

"Sweetheart, there is not a damn thing in that world that can take us out. We are kicking these guys' asses every time they see us. I give this campaign maybe a few months more and we'll be back. Can you do that for me? One more time?"

Samantha stood there silent for a few moments before nodding. "Yeah, for you and Abbie."

Elton chuckled. "Damn right you can."

Elsewhere, everyone else prepared themselves for the trip ahead. Itami stood talking to Risa, no doubt finding the courage within himself to talk to her after what Kincaid and Wilkes had told him. Shino and Mari stood off to the side talking to a news reporter and her cameraman. Evidently the new reporter was none other than Shino's sister.

They did share a striking resemblance to each other after all.

The rest of the special region guests had long piled into the bus. There was anything in particular they had to say to this world, it wasn't their home. That didn't stop a small part of them from wishing they could see it again in the near future.

Meanwhile, Kincaid shared one last phone call with his sister on his father's phone. The Marine paced back and forth as Jackson stood off to the side, giving them the privacy they needed.

"So, you're going back?"

"Yeah, this was never meant to be anything longer than quick trip."

"I know, god Jasper. I just, I just wish you were out now and back home."

"You, me, and everyone else Janice. It shouldn't be much longer."

"It shouldn't be much longer but you know and I both know you have no idea how much longer that'll be."

Kincaid paused from pacing and rubbed his eyes. "Yeah, I know. Just trying to be optimistic."

"Well at least one of us is trying."

Kincaid glanced at his father and shook his head, Jackson merely returning the gesture as his son returned to the call.

"Look, you don't need to worry about me sis. There's nothing over there that can hurt me, just focus on your studies alright?"

"Kind of hard to not worry about my brother when he's off fighting in another world." Kincaid could hear his sister sigh. "But I'll do what I gotta do. Just promise me you'll bring your bull headed ass back through safe alright?"

Kincaid smiled. "Yeah, dieing off in fantasy land ain't on my to do list."

"Not funny."

"Hey I tried right?"

"Yeah yeah, mister I call mom drunk off my ass."

"Can we not talk about that? I already feel like crap for that."

"She's just worried about you, we all are Jasper." Janice paused before talking off in the background. "Look I gotta go, Dylan's here to pick me up. We're going to go see the new Star Wars. Our theater is showing it early."

Kincaid groaned loud enough for just about everyone to hear him. He had completely forgotten the newest installment in the series was coming including all the game releases he had missed. It was enough to break his nerd heart.

"Ugh, don't remind me. You two are lucky as hell. Well look, have fun and be sure to tell me how it was alright?"

"Alright will do. I love you Jasper, stay safe and go make those assholes pay for Ginza."

"I'm about to make em pay for making me miss Star Wars too."

" _ **Jasper**_."

"Alright alright. Love you too sis, take care and let Dylan know I said what's up."

With that Kincaid hung up the phone and gave it back to his father.

"So, how was the phone call?"

"Good, you know. The usual, she seemed to be alright."

Jackson put tucked his phone away into one of his coat pockets before smiling. "Yeah well you know how she is. She's a tough girl."

"Yeah, smart too." Kincaid chuckled. "Smarter than her brother that's for sure."

Jackson put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Give yourself more credit son. You're smart too, you just had your own route to go."

"Yeah, I suppose."

Father and son stared at the gate's dark abyss for a few moments.

"So, this is it."

"Yeah, back to the grind."

Jackson sighed. "Look, I'm not gonna give you a long ass speech. You know the music son, it's time to dance. Got some freedom, got a quick break. I sure as hell never got that when I was in the Gulf War."

"You also weren't off fighting in another world."

"True, regardless. You go in there and keep doing what you gotta do. Stay near the tank, keep your wits about you and watch each others backs alright? You survived Afghanistan, you'll survive this too."

Kincaid looked down. "Yeah, yeah I know."

Jackson open his arms and embraced his son, Kincaid returning the gesture. "You make me proud son, me and everyone else. You've been through a lot and you're still pushing hard, just like Marines do."

"I have you to thank for that pops. You made me what I am."

"No, I just laid the foundation. You did the rest."

Father and son gripped each other tightly for a few more moments. As Jackson opened an eye, he saw Itami waving and nodded in response before letting go of Kincaid.

"Alright son, off you go."

Kincaid nodded before making his way over towards the bus with the other troops. As he began to embark he heard Jackson call out to him, pausing for a moment as he looked at his father.

"Son!"

"Yeah!?"

"I love you! Semper Fi Marine, give em hell rah!?"

"Rah gunny! Love you too!"

With that he made his way onto the bus, doing his best not to look back. As he sat down with the other Marines, he joined them in looking out their windows. Slowly but surely the vehicle lurched and began to make its way into the gate, the light from the outside being replaced by darkness and strobe lights. As each of the lights began to pass, Kincaid sighed as a tear began to stream down his face.

"Here We Go Again.."

 **XXXXXXX**

As Jackson watched the bus disappear into the mouth of the gate he sighed before making his way back to the SUVs. Clambering back into the lead vehicle, he closed the door behind him.

"Well that was fun I guess." Roger yawned as he leaned back against his seat. "A couple hiccups here n there, but nothing too dicey."

Heidegger had been sitting next to the younger agent, merely rolling his eyes as he continued to look out his window. "Never did find out what the hell was going on though. Busses breaking down, hotels catching on fire, thieves trying to make off with giant ass halberds."

"And getting an ass whooping the process." Roger chuckled.

"Yeah that too. Regardless, I was pretty damn sure we were gonna see something go down. Room Three was pissed as hell all last night, said the Jap SOG guys kept bugging em over the radio." The agent paused before smiling. "Evidently one the Japanese soldiers slept with one of the royals too."

Roger raised an eyebrow. "How the hell do you know that?"

"One of Room Three's guys said he saw ole girl sneak into his room."

"No shit."

Jackson sighed before shaking his head as he reached for one of the dash mounted handheld radios. "Let's just send this up and head back to the hotel. I'm ready to change into civies and get something to eat."

The other agents nodded in agreement. "Amen!"

Jackson depressed a button on the handheld. "Hotel Five this is Room One. Be advised, VIPs are through the gate."

"Solid copy on your last Room One. Be advised we got intel on the series of, events that transpired."

Jackson raised an eyebrow before turning the volume up on the radio for the rest of the agents to hear. "Send it."

There was silence for a few moments before the operator came back over the net. "There was absolutely nobody involved. The bus breaking down was a legitimate mechanical failure, nobody found any proof of engine tampering. The hotel catching on fire was because some drunk couple were smoking in their room. Long story short, their room started to catch on fire and the embarrassed pair made their way out with everyone else."

Heidegger and Roger facepalmed before Jackson keyed out once more. "And the thief? Did we run a background check on him?"

"That's an affirm. Public Safety identified him as some weird otaku guy who runs his own shop. A Satou Ichiroku, he just wanted to sell the halberd."

All of the agents sat there dumbfounded for a few moments before Jackson keyed out again. "Tango Hotel Five. We cleared to RTB?"

"That's an affirm, standby for debrief. After that you're free to go about your day."

"Tango, Room One out."

As Jackson returned the handheld to its station, he rubbed his eyes and groaned. "I'm getting too old for this shit."

"If this keeps up I won't even bother trying to get old in this job."

"Roger?"

"Yeah?"

"Shutup."

"Got it."

With that, the SUV gunned it out of the DMZ with the others it had arrived with.

* * *

 **"Okay, what the hell Faust? Where's muh shootout? Where's muh Devil Dogs going Call of Duty n shit?"  
**

 **Nowhere fam. Ya'll know damn well I never liked that original scene, it was fucking stupid. Russia and China may be on some plotting ass shit, but they wouldn't do something that stupid. Hakone should've been a chance to see these characters more in depth, they had one last night before going back through the gate. You telling me their emotions weren't all over the place?**

 **Bullshiiieeet.**

 **So what did I do? I went against the mold. I brought these characters to life. After all, what's a story without character development? What's a fanfic without cannon divergence?**

 **Also, if you find yourself looking at the Marines and being utterly dumbfounded with what to think? GOOD, that's why I'm here. To help you get CLOSE to understanding why we act the way we do. We're a strange group of guys, but that's a conversation for another time.**

 **Regardless, Japan is done. We're back through the gate people and shit only gets more wild from here. So I will see YOU in the PMs or on my forum. Ya'll take care now and let's hit this shit hard and heavy next chapter.**


	23. Interlude

**Each of these takes place at an unspecified date.**

* * *

 **Interlude: Of Things To Come  
**

 **1000 HOURS UNKNOWN AREA, FOB ALNUS  
**

"Miss Myuute, are you ready?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"Alright, we're going to try out a series of." A pause as the Marine scratched his head for a few moments, there wasn't a word in the Special Region Lingua Franca for "ECM".

"We're going to try out a series of, 'magical auras'. We're going to start low and work our ways up. If at any point you feel extreme discomfort, let us know immediately."

The young siren merely nodded in response and gave a thumbs up, a curious new gesture she learned from the soldiers. Across from the small lot she was in, a few Marines continued to tinker around with a small box. It was a strange contraption, squat, dark green and with three tan tubes atop it. Prior to this "test", Myuute had been constantly questioned on her ability to produce magic. In fact, that had been almost the only thing the strange soldiers ever asked her about. According to them, magic didn't exist in their world and many of their leaders wanted to know how it worked.

So she told them all she could. For all the dignity and kindness they had treated her with, Myuute had a feeling that continued cooperation would only benefit her. She had been a bandit at one point, she understood how deals worked. Thus far she had been on the receiving end of a great deal too. Warm meals, a roof over her head, even the chance to roam about freely in the refugee area.

Information for security, more than she could ever have hoped for had Italica gotten its hands on her.

"Alright, we're starting."

Myuute merely nodded silently and braced herself for whatever it was the Marines were going to do. In moments, one of the Marines flipped a switch and took a step back from the contraption. Meanwhile, other troops including the Japanese stood there watching.

Their weapons at the ready, just in case.

At first, Myuute had felt an almost strange aura in the air. It felt like a sort of buzzing in her head, a minor inconvenience at best. One of the Marines raised an eyebrow.

"Ma'am? Do you feel anything?"

"Sort of, I can't quite." She paused and shook her head slightly. "I can't quite explain it, but there's definitely something buzzing in my head."

The Marines and Japanese exchanged some glances before another one spoke up, an officer based on Myuute's deduction.

"Miss Myuute, try to conjure up something. You have our permission to."

The siren nodded in response, putting her feathered arms forward as she reached deep into the core of her being. The buzzing continued in her ear, throwing off her concentration slightly. In moments she was able to create a small wind orb however, not as potent as what she was capable of doing, but her ability to cast anything at all still remained.

Some of the soldiers looked visibly shaken, their first time seeing magic no doubt.

The officer from before looked at the other two Marines manning the strange box and muttered something. He then returned his gaze to Myuute. "Alright, now try to keep that spell up. We're going to increase the aura."

Again the siren nodded and again the Marines tinkered around with contraption. Things had been fine for a few moments.

Then **_it_** happened.

The intensity of the buzzing got worse, a lot worse. What had been a minor annoyance at best had turned into an almost dizzying feeling. Whatever the box creating this aura was, it didn't effect anyone else in the area.

Myuute wouldn't be deterred however, she had survived this long and had proven her worth. As far as she was concerned, this box was testing her natural ability to work with magic.

She wouldn't allow some unnatural contraption to strip her of her natural right.

So with great stress she continued to keep the orb summoned, even doing her best to try and increase its potency. Meanwhile, the Marines and Japanese exchanged glances and hushed whispers again. After a few of them scribbled notes down on pieces of parchment, the Marine officer spoke up.

"Ma'am? How do you feel now?"

Myuute squinted her eyes slightly as she put on her best face. "There's a sort of buzzing pressure building up inside my head. I definitely feel uncomfortable now, but I can take it."

"Very well." The officer looked at one of the Marines behind the contraption and nodded before looking back at Myuute. "Okay, we're going to set it to the highest aura. This is the last one and then you'll be free to go about your day. Are you sure you want to continue with this?"

The siren squinted a bit before composing herself as best she could. In a way she almost felt indebted to these soldiers, like as if she had to help them. They could have killed her at any time during Italica, but she had been spared. She knew she was important to them, and yet they still treated her with the same respect they treated each other.

She wouldn't let them down.

"Do it."

"Very well."

In moments one of the Marines behind the contraption gave Myuute a look of concern before nodding. No sooner had he flipped another switch, everything had gone from bad to worse.

 _ **A lot**_ worse.

As one who could harness magic, Myuute had heard and experienced a great many things in her life. She knew the warm natural feeling magic brought, the feeling of conjuring and casting it at something.

Or someone.

But nothing could compare to sheer amounts of _**wrong**_ coming out of that box. Whatever sort of "magic" that _**thing**_ had bottled up was of a completely different nature. It felt like as though someone had imprisoned spirits of hatred and despair, releasing them upon her mind. That was the best way to describe the shrieking that had taken residence inside Myuute's head. In moments, any semblance of concentration was lost as she grabbed her head. She screamed and convulsed as she fell to her knees and into the waiting arms of a Japanese soldier who had darted over.

" _ **MAKE IT STOP!**_ "

It was a pain she had never experienced before, a burning feeling that was tearing her very mind itself apart. Not only did these soldiers have the ability to lay waste to entire armies, but they could also challenge the very ethereal itself.

It terrified her and before passing out, Myuute made her peace with the gods. Praying she would never invoke the ire of these armies.

"Crap, corporal turn it off! Corpsmen get on her!"

"Jesus fucking Christ! I told you we shouldn't switch the goddamn ECM to the highest setting!"

"Christ, Doc is she good?!"

A few moments of silence.

"Yeah, shes breathing and I still got a pulse. But we gotta get her to the BAS like right the fuck now sir."

"Alright, get her over there ASAP. Sergeant raise the CP on the net."

"Sir, what do you want me to tell em?"

A pause.

"Tell them it worked."

* * *

 **0800 HOURS, CAMP ALNUS, STAGING AREA NEAR MAIN GATE**

In front of a long line of MRAPS and various other military vehicles, a certain infantry platoon commander did his best to stay focused.

Van Hauser winced slightly as he gingerly slid a hand down the back of his FROG shirt and under his flak vest.

The scars were still there, still itched something fierce. Along with several others he had accumulated over time, he had become a sort of scratching post. According to a certain cat girl they were meant to warn others that he was "claimed".

As far as the lieutenant knew, they were just part of the ritual that was their "secret" nightly escapades. "Secret" to everyone save one.

"Furry and a masochist. Jesus William, this world really done fucked with you huh?"

Boyd, the one who covered for Van Hauser multiple times.

The marksman snickered as he made his way over to his superior, giving the back of his flak a reassuring smack before adjusting his own. "What's the matter, you look tense."

"Boyd I swear to fucking god. Do you want me to pull the officer card? I can pull the officer card." Van Hauser glared as he smacked the side of Boyd's unstrapped kevlar.

"Ah Come on now Will you know I'm just yanking your chain." Boyd sighed. "Look man I know you're gonna miss her and al-"

Van Hauser shot another glare. "Just drop it. It was dumb of me to even think of it like that."

"But you did anyways."

Van Hauser sighed, Boyd was right as always. It had been a relatively smooth and relaxing stay at Alnus after the tankers came back from whatever the hell it was they had to do in Japan. During that time many of the troops both Marines and Japanese had found themselves with plenty of time to goof off.

Time to unwind, get to know the locals more, explore the thriving marketplace that had opened up in the refugee area.

For Van Hauser, it was time to get to know Felicia better. Long hours of walking through the refugee area and sharing stories of each others world.

All well and good until the MEB and the UN began to trickle in. Once they showed up, things started to get a hell of a lot more crowded and a hell of a lot more busy.

In truth Van Hauser knew damn well he was going to be leaving to Italica with his company, and that Felicia wasn't going to be part of that move. Once the tankers were done getting their retrofits attached to their tanks and gear packed up, the plan was to SP to their new post.

Where they would be operating from for the foreseeable future.

So with a heavy heart, Van Hauser had tried his best to explain the situation to the teary eyed cat girl.

"I have to go back to work, but I promise I'll try to keep in touch as best I can."

Those were the words he had said, the flat out lie he had said. He knew damn well there was no way he'd be able to effectively keep in touch.

Needs of the Corps, needs far more important than Van Hauser's.

The lieutenant had just finished checking over the rest of his platoon when his company commander Major Joyce whistled to get their attention.

"Gentlemen! Form it up."

A series of "Rahs" and motivated "Yuts" ushered forth as the Marines made their way over in one big mob. Once everyone had sufficiently crowded around Joyce, the Major cleared his throat.

"Gentlemen? How we doing?"

All the Marines sounded off as one. "ERRRRR!"

"Out fucking standing." The Major took his kevlar off, keeping his dark ESS glasses on as he began to look over his men. "Gentlemen, as you may already know. Italica is going to be our new home for the rest of the time we're here. This is an area of great value to both us and our allies, it's the central trading hub for the region. That being said we will be occupying it and keeping it under our watch."

He paused to eye the tankers tending to the their machines at the front of the convoy. With the myriad of new upgrades attached to them and various unorthodox modifications, he almost didn't recognize them.

"With some extra fire power to boot. Regardless, once we get there it's gonna be busy for a little bit. We'll be assisting the Seabees in any way we can both in getting our equipment set up, as well as assisting the locals. Once that's done, UN peacekeepers and their various aids will be trickling in."

The Major paused to spit, a small dark stain on the ground letting the Marines know he had been dipping. If his slightly bulging lower lip wasn't a dead giveaway.

"Gentlemen, you may also be pleased to know that we'll be assisted by a few volunteers who have offered their services to our cause as interpreters."

Joyce glanced off to the side and nodded, one by one a few individuals in slightly baggy tri color BDUs and flaks made their way to the front. All the Marines watched wide eyed as the interpreters stood in a single file line next to the Major. A human male with messy brown hair and a sword attached to his hip. One of the rabbit girls all the younger Marines had been raving about. Much like the man, she too was similarly armed, but with a massive bow complete with a quiver on her back. Finally a cat girl with jet black hair and dark green eyes, her tail jutting out of the back of her trousers at an odd angle.

"Gentlemen, this is Norman Co Augustus, Janus of the Northern Tribes, and Felicia. They'll be working with us for the foreseeable future. You learn from them as they learn from you, protect them as you would the Marine to your left and right."

As each of the interpreters bowed, Van Hauser coughed violently out of shock. Boyd shot him a mischievous smile as he pat the stunned lieutenant's back, muttering under his breath all the while.

"Well, I'll be damned. Looks like it's your lucky day after all Will."

As the slack jawed officer nodded, he noticed that Felicia was looking directly at him.

With a massive fanged grin.

* * *

 **0900 HOURS, ITALICA**

"They're back!"

"Who is back?"

"The Iron knights! Come see!"

Aurea had been busy dusting off some cabinets when two of the maids had came running down the hallway, their faces flushed with excitement. Once she had heard the news, she quickly chased off after them in order to confirm the rumor for herself. After running through the winding hallways and up some stairs, she joined them in looking out a window.

Sure enough there they were, and they weren't alone. Nor did they come quietly, two of flying chariots circled around blasting their strange music from the skies above.

* * *

 **Wagner and Beethovens' Album of Awesome**

 **Track 29: Queen "The Show Must Go On"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

 _The show must go on_  
 _The show must go on, yeah_  
 _Inside my heart is breaking_  
 _My make-up may be flaking_  
 _But my smile still stays on_

At the forefront of a large caravan and in the midst of dust trails, the young medusa could just barely make out the four behemoths. Each one cruised at the same speed, their snouts pointed and slowly traversing left and right as they led a convoy of smaller vehicles. As Aurea squinted further, she saw it, the tank she wanted to see the most.

It was looking right in her direction, or so she thought. Like its fellows, it looked different than it had before. A small tower sat atop it looking every which way and a new smaller snout sat atop the tank's larger one.

But the claw marks still remained, and that meant one thing.

Kincaid was back, just as he said he would. Aurea smiled and held her hands close to her chest. Her snakes were almost ramrod straight as they pointed towards the convoy and the tank beyond.

Pointed at Kincaid.

"I told you they'd be back."

Aurea paused from daydreaming as she heard Mamina's voice from behind her. As the younger maid turned around, she noticed that the warrior bunny had been smiling.

"Mamina, I feel as though you're just as excited to see them as I. Perhaps George came back too?"

The older maid shook her head, looking flustered to say the least. "No, George is a funny little man nothing more. He amuses me."

"But of course."

The two maids giggled before returning to watching the convoy get closer to Italica.

Things were going to get a great deal more interesting in the coming days.

 _The show must go on_  
 _I'll face it with a grin_  
 _I'm never giving in_  
 _On, with the show_

* * *

 **SADERA, IMPERIAL CAPITAL, EMPEROR'S THRONE ROOM**

To say Emperor Molt Sol Augustus was angry was an understatement. From the moment the gate to the other world had opened, all of his plans suffered failure after failure. His legions were being laid to waste and by an enemy his generals knew little about. The other armies continued to spread further and further, Alnus was still heavily fortified and showed zero signs of being assailable.

His daughter and her knights had been gone for far too long. The emperor sighed as he rubbed his forehead in frustration, his other hand cradling a glass of wine.

 _It feels as though the very gods themselves conspire against me._

"My lord!"

Molt's train of thought was interrupted as one of his lower ranking captains ran into the throne room. The old soldier made his way down the large red carpet in the center of the room before pausing to kneel.

"My lord, I bring news."

"Rise Captain Pythor, what news and from where?"

The captain nodded before taking a stand and fixing his uniform nervously. "My lord, I bring information two fold. Pina is back at Italica, she is safe and unharmed and means to return to us in the following days."

Molt nodded. "Finally, some good news. What of the other piece of information?"

Pythor gulped, his nervous expression clear even behind his helmet's visor. "My lord the other comes not from outside the capital, but from within. And not from our forces."

"What?"

"It was a message found on one our patrols that had gone missing last night. All of the men, were killed."

Molt's growing anger was visible on his wizened features, a vein slowly beginning to bulge on his forehead. "And pray tell captain, what did it say?"

The soldier pulled on the neck piece for his armor. "It said that the Akusho District belonged to the ' _ **Phantoms**_ ' and that should we send more men, the bodies will keep piling."

The emperor slowly stood up, a glare beginning to grow on his face. "Was there anything more captain?"

"Yes, that uh." Pythor gulped once more. "That they were watching and when the order came, they would be coming for you next."

Molt promptly roared in anger and threw his wine glass as far as he could across the room. "Summon Zorzal and Diabo at once!"

"Y-yes my lord!"

As the captain ran out of the throne room, Molt slowly returned to his seat and groaned. It was only going to get worse from here on, suddenly he paused and glanced around the room nervously.

He felt like he was being watched.

* * *

 **1200 HOURS, WASHINGTON D.C. OVAL OFFICE**

"Mister President? There's a representative from Lockheed Martin on the other line."

Obama sighed before paging through to his secretary. "Very well, thank you."

As the president switched to another line, he was immediately greeted. "Mister President, George Kittrel CEO of Lockheed Martin. It's an honor to speak to you today."

"What is it this time Kittrel? More back and forth news about the jet?"

There was pause for a few moments before Kittrel's voice returned. "Not quite, in fact the F35s are just finishing up their final testing. You should be receiving your first A and B models here soon."

"So then? What's the deal Kittrel? Let's not stand on ceremonies here, we've talked before."

"Mister president, I'll get straight to the point. There's no telling what tomorrow will bring, but I do know this. Your forces are standing in one of the greatest testing areas of all time. We at Lockheed would like to utilize that testing area, for your peace of mind and our peace of mind."

Obama raised an eyebrow. "What are you trying to say Kittrel? You want to send them in?"

"Yes and no, we only want to send two B models. These are the ones the Marine Corps is purchasing after all. Now I know what you're thinking here, why send fifth generation stealth aircraft to a world that doesn't even understand the basic fundamentals of flight? A world where the these jets will be able to drop ordinance with relative impunity. That's the beauty of it Mister President, combat is the surest test period. We send these in, drop ordinance on targets of opportunity."

The businessman chuckled. "Perhaps shoot some things out of the sky from miles away, and they're done. We collect the data and bring them back out just as soon as they came in. With nobody else any the wiser."

Obama returned to his seat and furrowed his brow for a few moments. A small part of him agreed to what the CEO was saying. After all, he was a businessman once and he understood the angle Kittrel was coming from.

A fully tested quality product was a valuable product.

"You understand we don't have GPS in that world right?"

"Not a problem, in fact this works to our favor. The jet can still utilize laser guided munitions as well as its anti air missiles. Operating in a semi degraded capability will iron out any other potential scenarios we may possibly face on the modern battlefield."

Obama sat there for a few moments, contemplating the options in front of him before sighing again.

"Alright, I can see the reason in that. Do try and utilize our chain of command sometime though, we're not strangers but we also have rules for a reason."

"My apologies. Regardless, thank you Mister President and again thank you for doing business with us. 'We never forget who we're working fo-'"

The president promptly hung up. "Yes, I get it." He then returned to sorting through the paperwork on his desk, he still had a trip to Alnus with the Japanese Prime Minister to plan out.

* * *

 **1300 HOURS, MARSOC AREA, FOB ALNUS**

"Jay-Kay this is bullshit, why the hell do we have to babysit psycho bitch?"

"Because the order came from the higher ups, that's why."

"Why can't they just have someone else do it? A guns a gun."

"Yeah, but it ain't shit if the one behind it doesn't have the balls or the brains to squeeze the trigger."

"Give it up Nutt, you're not winning this."

"You just want to shoot shit period, trigger happy ass _**cowboy**_. Cowboy Cam."

"Real clever, for someone so smart you act real fucking stupid."

"I think the chance to study Rory would be interesting, wouldn't mind seeing how she ticked."

"Jesus Doc, you creep me right the fuck out sometimes."

Emerson rolled his eyes as the rest of his team continued to go back and forth regarding the new orders. As he took a step out of the tent and into the fresh afternoon air, he sighed before taking a drag from his E-Cig.

" _ **We're just one other side of this fucked up coin.**_ Regardless, pack your shit, we leave to Italica in three hours."

* * *

 **U.S. EMBASSY JAPAN**

Ambassador Kroger made his way out of the embassy and towards the uparmored motorcade that awaited him. As he made his way towards his vehicle, some men garbed in tactical gear emerged from the SUVs.

The lead man adjusted the holster for his sidearm before extending a hand to shake Kroger's.

"Ambassador Kroger, Agent Kincaid. We'll be accompanying you through the gate and beyond."


	24. Welcome Back

**AAAANNDD here we are again!**

 **So, you know the drill. Procrastination, life, New Battlefield 1 (Shit's dope as fuck). No excuse but ya'll know I like to keep you informed of what's going on, why shit takes so long to update.**

 **Shout out to my boys for helping me with this chapter, really poured my heart into this one. It's good to be back in Falmart to be honest, felt good to bring back that classic HWGA spirit.**

 **Regardless, here's some news for you forum goers. It's with GREAT pleasure that I announce the forum RP to be back in the works. We fell on some tough times, lots of disagreement, dumb people in dumb places that sort've thing.**

 **We're working on getting the new rules ironed out and believe me when I say there's gonna be some rules. It was a lack of structure that made the last one fall apart.**

 **Regardless, nuff of my chit chat. See you guys on the subreddit, the PMs, and maybe the forum too.**

 **OH! And one last thing, do check the the interlude. I had to add some things to it to really set up the the mood for what's to come.**

* * *

 **Chapter 23: Welcome Back**

 _"Throughout my professional life, I have looked upon the Corps as a most valuable part of our naval organization, and this opinion has only been the more confirmed by every year's additional experience in active service_ "

 _RAdm S. F. DuPont in letter to Col Commandant John Harris, 6th CMC, 29 Dec. 1863_

 **FOUR MONTHS SINCE INITIAL INCURSION, SADERA, IMPERIAL CAPITAL OF FALMART**

Outside the capital's castle, two phantoms watched as a heathen act was carried out in front of them. They had been there for hours, hidden among one of the many buildings and watching from its window.

Its former Imperial occupants long dead and left in a pile right behind them.

The phantoms watched as their prey made a mockery of his guest, the rabbit woman's long grey ears twitching in pain as the phantoms' target had his way with her. It was the result of years of arrogance, ignorance and royal living.

The man believed he was above all overs, even if he had no idea his life could end at any moment.

His name was Zorzal, according to the information the phantoms had received, one of the important figureheads to the imperial royal family.

One of the phantoms clicked a few notches on the side of his rifle, adjusting the zoom on Zorzal's blonde haired head as he grit his teeth.

His smug smile, the tears coming from the woman he was defiling so. The phantom whose finger twitched on the trigger had grown up in the hard streets of Mexico City, seen this sort of thing before.

It never got easier.

"Can we fucking ice this guy? Shit's making my blood boil _hermano_."

"No, we can't. Command was implicit that we monitor, they want this asshole and his daddy alive."

"Then why don't we just go in and get the guy? They don't have fucking electricity, we wait till nightfall and get the _putas_."

"It doesn't work that way. Besides, you know Recker and the Chief would be pissed if we did. Not to mention, the Japanese are kinda still leading this operation. They don't want us going trigger happy, not as long as they deem we can bring this all to a peaceful conclusion. This shit is coming down from general Hazama's superiors, not ours. You know damn well general Augustine would have long let us run through this place."

A scoff.

"Because the Japs are fucking leaders in the world of military operations. Just because Saber and Lancer are good to go, doesn't mean their leaders are."

" _ **Bro**_.."

"Fine, but fuck man, this shit is wrong. Do we have to watch this?"

"Unfortunately yeah, this is surveillance isn't it?"

"Yeah...yeah it is. Sorry man, I just—"

"Say no more bro, I want the bastard dead too. You know how it is though, we don't just go pulling triggers without some firm logic to back it up."

Some silence followed before a voice chimed into both phantoms' ears.

"Shade, this is Phantom Actual. Status report."

The non firing phantom kept his eyes in his binoculars, pressing a finger to his ear and whispering as he continued to watch Zorzal.

"Phantom Actual this is Shade. Be advised we have Little Caesar in our scope, bastards enjoying himself again."

There was some silence for a few moments before Recker responded. "Copy, is she there?"

The phantom operating the scoped rifle grit his teeth. "Yeah, she's there."

"Solid, she's there. We have eyes on Tyuule."

Some more silence.

"Roger that. Saber is sending two of their guys to your position now. Hold tight, you're gonna be relieved soon."

"Tango, Shade out."

The spotter phantom sighed before giving his partner a firm tap on the shoulder. "Won't be long now, Mendez. Hang in there bro."

"Yeah, whatever you say."

* * *

 **1000 HOURS, JADE PALACE TEMPORARY EMBASSY**

* * *

 **Hearts and Mind's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 30: Consolation No. 3-Franz Liszt**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

"Aldritch? Captain Aldritch?"

Aldritch shook his head and rubbed his exhausted eyes at the sound of Piña's voice. He was spacing out again, having little to no sleep the night prior.

The newly promoted captain sighed as he gazed one last time over the ledge of the gazebo he and the princess were under. Beautiful sunny day, the light reflecting off the crystal clear waters of the lake surrounding them. It stood in stark contrast to the verdant green of the grass at the water's edge. He scanned over the various military personnel and their interpreters as they interacted with the Imperial nobility. Meanwhile, maids not unlike the ones seen at Italica hurried to and fro as they tended to guests both local and otherwise.

The captain had to hand it to the nobility of this world, they certainly knew where to pick their estates.

Months ago, if someone had told me we'd be doing something like this? I would've told em "No way, these people just don't fucking listen."

But they did listen. Some of them did anyways, thanks to Piña. It was because of her that all of this was possible today.

Aldritch shook his head, adjusting the sling for his M4 before turning to face her. "Sorry, long night."

The princess's attire for today was a far cry from the Rose Order armor or political robes she often wore. No, today was a special occasion that called for special garb. A pink toga adorned with various gems on sashes that crisscrossed every which way. The occasional gold bracelet wrapped itself around her arms and ankles and her red hair was tied back in an elaborate bun.

She was absolutely stunning, to say the least, even if her garb was just one bad gust of wind away from a wardrobe malfunction. Not a single curve on her body was missed by the silken fabric and Aldritch caught himself staring more than once.

She was dressed for the occasion, unlike him. FROG suit, eight point cover and his plate carrier. Could've been worse though; beat the hell out of wearing service uniforms.

Piña smiled. "It may not look it, but I'm quite exhausted myself, to be honest. Believe me, gathering some of the more..." She paused as she tried to find the right word. "Understanding, families was no easy task. Then of course there were all the letters I had to send and answer to. The magnitude of this event."

The princess sighed. "The struggles of being in my position I suppose."

Aldritch gave a tired smile before folding his arms. "Oh, I know very well, Your Highness, I have a whole platoon's worth of trouble to manage and then some. The burden of leadership is a heavy one, but it can be a satisfying one as well."

 _Commanding a platoon of tanks, maybe the whole company if the new rumor Charlie isn't being divested persists._

His eyes wandered over towards _Here We Go Again_ for a moment. The tank was, for all intents and purposes, nowhere near as far away from prying eyes as Aldritch knew his tankers wanted to be. Turret over the side and gun elevated, its dragon scars displayed proudly. The tank was displayed for all to see right next to the water's edge and just close enough to the festivities for everyone to try and wander over.

Which they did.

From Japanese troops, curious nobles and even some of the other Marines. It felt like everyone wanted to go over and ask the annoyed crew an endless amount of questions.

Or in the case of officers, Shino, Mari and anyone else who knew the tankers, irritate them.

Piña noticed the captain's wandering eyes and chuckled. "They seem to be enjoying themselves, feels like it's been forever since we've had a moment of peace such as this."

Aldritch rolled his eyes. "Oh believe me, they're not."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, they're pretty simple men. Food, sleep, time off..." Aldritch paused and watched as his men were surrounded by a throng of giggling women similarly dressed as Piña. Benitez's boonie cover was promptly swiped from his head, the girl in question placing it upon her own as the others looked at it wide eyed. The Marines stood there utterly confused as to what to do as each of the girls fussed over who would get to wear it next.

 _Women… though these blockheads have had plenty of that back at Italica. Way more than any troop should have during a fucking deployment._

Piña raised an eyebrow. "Captain?"

"Ah yeah, they're simple guys. They don't do so well with the big crowds. Believe it or not, they'd be perfectly fine sleeping in back at Italica."

The princess giggled. "Really? Even with all that publicity back in Italica and the villages?. You are the legendary dragon fighters after all." She paused and smiled. "'Sir Aldritch'."

The captain groaned, his unofficial title. A new badge of honor to wear alongside his new rank, the result of months of almost non-stop operating. There was also the fact that he was now the new CO of Charlie Company, a necessary promotion in order to keep the company in order and away from being disbanded.

What would happen to the other platoons and who the new XO would be, was anyone's guess.

"I told you not to call me that. I'm no knight, nor are the rest of us. Captain Aldritch or James works just fine too."

"Apparently, Countess Myui and Clan Formal seem to think differently. I told you multiple times to call me Piña, you don't need to use honorifics around me, James. We've spent plenty of time together training and learning from one another, my knights and your men included. Or have you already forgotten some of the battles we've fought together?"

Aldritch thought back to the some of the "operations" they had ran with Piña's knights. The Rose Order had insisted that they helped the coalition establish a safe region. They needed their people to see that they still cared for them, still fought for them. Command was all too pleased with the idea, having long enforced troops working alongside local interpreters among other things.

With proper monitoring of course, nobody needed repeats of Iraq or Afghanistan.

After a while and with some good cross training, the Rose Order had turned into an efficient cavalry unit. They could flank or cause disruption among enemy bandits in the most unlikely of places. Their preferred method of combat was routing the enemy into kill boxes set up by coalition forces or acting as makeshift scouts for infantry in difficult terrain.

This came at great cost however. Should word get out they were collaborating with the coalition, there was a very good chance they'd be marked as traitors to the Empire. Even with command promising the knights sanctuary, it was still a great risk.

But one they were willing to take. Their loyalty came to Piña and their people first. They also knew very well that Emperor Molt's reign was coming to a close. There was simply no way he'd stay in power after ordering the attack on Ginza, condemned the illogical slaughtering of countless innocents.

Unlike the rest of the Empire, the knights knew who started the war, who was at fault. They had kicked over a hornet's nest and been stung in a way they'd never experienced before. Which was why they were thankful the coalition was willing to negotiate anything at all in the first place. It was either cooperate and see a better future.

Or be destroyed, punished for the terrible mistake they had made.

Aldritch sighed. "No I haven't and you've come a long way from when we first met. Your knights worked surprisingly well with my tanks and we're thankful for the lessons you've taught us in melee fighting."

 _And the bruises too, thanks Gray  
_

Piña smiled and returned to watching the festivities. "I'm glad to see all of this James, to see your people and mine interacting like this. It gives me hope, makes me believe that better days are ahead."

Aldritch made his way over to Piña's side. "Yeah, me too. Believe me, fighting ain't fun. It's not something I savor, and I'm sure the men agree with that too. If we could end this all quickly tomorrow, then we'd be fine with that. We give as good as we get, 'no greater friend'."

Piña quickly finished the line with a smirk. "'And no worse enemy'. I know James, I saw that line pop up many times when you taught me about your order."

"That I did, that I di—" Aldritch was interrupted as his chest mounted radio blared to life, Itami's voice on the other end. "Horsemen One Actual this is RCT3 Actual."

The captain nodded to Piña before depressing a button on the radio. "Send it."

"Be advised, ambassadors Sugawara and Kroger are looking for the princess. What's your current position?"

Aldritch rolled his eyes. _What's my current position? Fucking dork._

"Roger, we're at the gazebo. End of the bridge, middle of the lake, can't miss it."

" _Ryōkai desu_."

"Say again?"

"Sorry, roger that."

Aldritch rolled his eyes before looking at the Princess. "Well, looks like ambassador Kroger and Sugawara are on their way over here. Guess it's time for them to talk to you."

Piña's face flushed red. "O-oh, good. Uh, I was w-wondering." As the princess stammered, Aldritch put a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax. They just want to talk to you. This isn't some sort of declaration of increased hostilities or anything of the sort. You've been nothing but cooperative with us and we're thankful for that. Nothing bad is going to happen to you." Aldritch smiled warmly. "I promise."

Piña gave a shuddering sigh before slowly raising a hand and clasping Aldritch's. "I trust you. After all, you haven't led me astray yet."

"Nor do I ever intend to." He then gave a thumbs up. "Besides you got to meet our Commander in Chief, you handled yourself very well with him. That's probably the most powerful man back in our world, you do understand that right?"

"Oh I'm aware, he was very kind though."

"Yeah he's the people's president alright. For now anyways."

 _Who knows how Trump or Hillary will turn out, or Bernie...fuck that._

Piña raised an eyebrow. "For now?"

"Yes, by the end of this year our elections will have concluded and a new president will have been elected. You remember how our process works, I taught you about it."

"You did." Piña sighed. "Do you think your new president will have a major impact on the going of this war?"

Aldritch nodded. "Hard to say for sure, depends on who gets elected. But lets focus on the now alright?"

The pair watched as Itami and the two ambassadors made their way down the bridge leading towards them, unlike their security entourage they had chosen to wear the local garb of togas and sandals.

A dress code that had never circulated evidently.

They stood out in stark contrast to the group of fully geared Marines and Japanese troops following close behind. There were also some non uniformed men, but just as heavily geared. Unlike the others they had chosen to wear dark shirts and khaki colored pants with tan boots. Each had a pair of dark shades and a few were sporting black ballcaps. Once the group got closer both Piña and Aldritch's eyes went wide.

It was Jackson, Heidegger, and Roger, the same Diplomatic Security agents from before.

"Captain Aldritch, Princess Piña Co Lada." Jackson nodded with a warm smile. "Good to see you both again." He paused before eyeing Aldritch's rank. "Congratulations on the new promotion sir."

Aldritch returned the gesture, Piña merely nodding. "Likewise, didn't expect you to be here."

Roger murmured as he adjusted his plate carrier. "Yeah neither did we."

Ignoring Roger's disdain Jackson shook his head. "Well you know how it is. When the call comes you gotta answer it, our superiors were pretty pleased with our performance back in Japan and our rapport with the Falmartian guests. Guess they figured it was only fitting for us to accompany Ambassador Kroger here."

Before Aldritch could respond, Jackson put a hand up. "No, **_he_ ** doesn't know I'm here and I'd prefer to keep it that way. His focus needs to be on the mission, nothing more."

Aldritch nodded before glancing back at _Here We Go Again_ to ensure Kincaid wasn't looking over. "I understand."

Ambassador Kroger promptly cleared his throat interrupting the exchange. "Gentlemen, I don't need mean to intrude but we do have talks to carry out."

"Our apologies Mister Ambassador." Jackson gestured towards the main building before changing his tongue to that of the local language as he addressed Piña. "Your highness? If you would follow us."

Piña nodded. "Of course."

With that, the group made their way back towards the palace.

 **XXXXXXX**

Elton sighed as the throng of noble women were finally shooed off by their elders. The rest of the tankers groaned as they returned to loitering around.

"Smile and wave guys, smile and wave."

"Guys?"

"Nigga fuck that, I'm trying to eat me some high class dining."

"Yo?"

"Fat chance. We're stuck here till god knows when and you know it. They gave us some fuck ass MREs and said 'have at it.'"

"Guys?"

The rest of the crew paused from chatting and glanced at a nervous Benitez. "What?!"

"I think those girls still have my hat..."

Elton palmed his face. "Yeah bro, kiss that shit goodbye. Better fucking hope you got a spare."

The solemn driver looked around for a few moments, Elton merely groaning in response. "There's a spare boonie in my sponson box. I better get that shit back, nigga."

" _Gracias_."

"Yeah, _de nada_."

As Benitez crawled up the tank, Kincaid shook his head as he chewed on stale gum. Both he and the rest of his crew had been strictly forbidden from smoking during the meet and greet.

It annoyed them all to no end.

From the moment they had entered this world, all forms of logic seemed to have been abandoned both in and out of standard operating procedure. Tanks doing recon; stupid, but nobody died. Coming across magic and every other fantasy trope; if the shoe fits, wear it. Going off to Japan to do political meetings; bizarre, but somebody had to talk. Months of sitting around on QRF, hunting down bandits and imperial insurrectionists; familiar and in fact, many of the veterans had done the exact same thing during past deployments. Only, they were in countries where the enemy could actually fight back beyond giving someone the occasional bruise or odd arrow wound. Nothing modern medicine couldn't fix, though.

Someone had to keep the roads secure and after two months of doing just that, a territory completely under coalition control called the Corridor sprung up. This Corridor occupied most of the surrounding area near Italica, blanketed various villages, and stretched to Alnus. For the first time in years, farmers and traders could conduct business safely both day and night. The concept of banditry was pushed to near extinction, with very few foolish souls attempting to cause trouble.

For as long as the coalition had been operating in Falmart, however, the old folklore never seemed to die down. Stories from lucky survivors told of ghosts and shadow beasts that destroyed anyone with ill intentions at night. Bandit raiding parties would go off to seek plunder, only to never return. Imperial scouts would attempt to gather intel, only to suffer the same fate as the bandits.

All well and fine for the coalition, but that was then and this Jade Palace meet and greet was now.

Showing off military hardware to royalty whilst playing classical music from speakers set about in various places was where most troops grumbled. With _Here We Go Again_ set up like some sort of bizarre display piece, it was not hard to understand. This was where any sane minded troop drew the line, not like they had any say in the matter though.

They never did.

To be fair, half of the troops' woes came from the fact that everything leading up to conducting the operation had been a series of hoops they had to jump through. Zero six hundred wake up, with a two and half hour brief following in short order. After that came standing by for an extra hour waiting for Italica's CP to clear them to leave.

The drive over had been the easy part. Once they got to the Jade Palace, it was a simple matter of sending units to their prearranged positions. Security would be paramount, especially with important personnel present. _The Four Horsemen_ and infantry teams both Japanese and American were set up in positions overwatching various roads leading to the palace. Handpicked teams of veteran troops escorted important officers as well as any other dignitaries, a few female nobles giggling as they ooh'd and ahh'd at them. Interpreters comprising of local volunteers both human and otherwise made their rounds with anyone who needed their assistance. Though they were met with some raised eyebrows from the nobility at first, old prejudice died hard.

Until the nobles came to realize that the beast people were working with the men from the other world. The days of prejudice were long past, and it was best for everyone to get with the times.

Meanwhile, a pair of drones loitered thousands of feet above the air, their locations only known to the troops. They circled lazily, keeping a vigilant eye on anything the ground teams couldn't see and packing ordinance in case someone or something got uppity.

Ultimately, the goal of the operation was simple.

Hearts and minds, establish a common ground with the Imperial nobility and start working towards getting some sort of sympathizing faction together. To do this, the coalition brought its best and spared no expense in showing their prowess both militarily and in extending the proverbial olive branch. Meet and greet with the usual handshakes, followed by a "demonstration of force" afterwards.

Which was why _Here We Go Again_ was here, its crew bored out of their minds as they mulled about atop their machine in full gear. The brass knew damn well having a tank present that had "bested" something as powerful as the flame dragon would further embolden the coalition's position. Prior to the gate opening, such a beast was legendary in that apparently little to nothing had ever so much as dented its hide.

The coalition had done more than that in little to less than a few months with a tank and constant air patrols keeping the beast on the run. If rumors were to be believed that is, they still weren't any closer to finding the damned thing. Turns out it was a lot smarter than they gave it credit.

Then of course Itami and his harem were there as some of the troops had begun calling the three girls that loitered around him almost twenty four-seven. One of whom was making their way over to the tank to annoy its crew as usual.

Rory, her presence was met with more than a few raised eyebrows during the planning phase. Many officers including Augustine were nothing short of suspicious if not outright untrusting as to why she was even hanging around in the first place. Thus far, her motives were still unclear and any questioning on the matter was always met with the same response.

"Itami and my knights interest both myself and Emroy. I go where they go. They go where I go. There's nothing more to be said."

By knights, the apostle was referring to the tankers. A strong if not slightly uncomfortable bond had formed during the three months, one that only seemed to deepen every time she loitered around their area or went out with them during routine presence patrols. Though Aldritch had argued against this arrangement countless times, nobody argued the effect seeing her accompanying the tanks or their crews had on the locals.

The god that Rory served, Emroy, evidently represented war and martial prowess. So it was no surprise that the locals had begun associating the Four Horsemen in the same light. Some had even began calling them the "Riders of Emroy". Combined with the tankers' recent unexpected knighting from Clan Formal for their service to Italica, it was no surprise this nickname was given.

Not like they cared, they still considered themselves the same dirty rag tag group of men who lived in steel boxes when outside the wire. Knights didn't go around making vulgar jokes. They also didn't take turns standing watch for one another as they snuck out at night to meet with a pretty face, or sneak the same pretty face over into their area.

At least, not in the traditional sense.

Regardless, even with the positive rapport working with Rory brought, the suspicion that she would eventually go rouge still lingered. With the display of her superhuman abilities in various operations that had occurred, this suspicion was only further solidified.

As the smiling apostle made her way towards the tank, Kincaid reflected on all this as his eyes darted around. If she was here, Emerson and his Raiders were too. They were the judge, jury, and executioner should she act out of line.

The MARSOC officer had told Kincaid this personally, and the corporal knew damn well Aldritch knew it too.

"My knights! Why do you seem so down? It is a beautiful day is it not?!"

Wilkes had just finished sneaking in a quick smoke from behind the tank when he heard Rory's telltale giggle, the loader groaned as he made his way around the front of the tank. Once the other tankers saw the apostle, they too joined in with his mild disdain.

"Yeah, real beautiful. Too bad we're not allowed to enjoy it. In case you haven't noticed, we're kinda busy." Elton paused from responding to the apostle as he carefully stepped around the newly installed CROWS system, one of many upgrades the tank platoon had received courtesy of the Army.

It was only fair after all, The Four Horsemen weren't slated to be rotated out anytime soon. The brass wanted to keep their most experienced troops in Falmart for the time being, they needed men and women experienced with this world to stay until "a satisfactory point in the campaign was met."

Even with the Third MEB's arrival and the accompanying UN. Those who had been part of the first incursion into the gate were sent forward of Alnus, continuing to operate at their respective FOBs and assisting UN peacekeepers. Meanwhile, the MEB would acclimate to this new world and rotate their units with others as the need arose. This would ensure morale was kept in good standing, not every FOB had Wi-Fi or the tastes of home Alnus brought.

 _The Four Horsemen_ didn't get this luxury, they wouldn't be rotated out. Nor would any additional tanks be sent into the Special Region.

Many of the tankers thought the Japanese would pick up the slack, only to get the news that they had actually sent many of their Type 74s back to be swapped out with the fewer but far more capable Type 90s. These units were mainly regulated to QRF near Alnus and even then, the Japanese constitution severely limited what they could and couldn't do.

Ultimately the Marines had to do the heavy lifting, with the Four Horsemen right up there with them. So to compensate for the large burden placed on their shoulders, the brass had each M1A1 fitted with what was being called the Special Region Sustainment Package, or SRSP.

New wiring, new optics, better track and a host of other components not often seen on A1s. The CROWS systems added to give TC's better target aquisition were just the tip of the iceberg. M48 coaxes were also mounted above each tank's main gun to give them extra knock down against anything a main gun didn't need to be used on. There were also the new APU's (Auxiliary Power Unit) to consider. Mounted just under the tank's engine exhaust, this new system had only been introduced on the new M1A2 SEP V3. Designed to greatly optimize power usage, it allowed the tanks to keep their engines off far longer to conserve fuel. This allowed them to operate without refuel for much longer periods of time.

Finally, one tank in each section was fitted with a dozer blade and every tank fitted with a pair of ECM jammers. The dozer blades were for obvious reasons, but the jammers were kept a secret to those who needed to know.

Which were the men operating them.

Electronic warfare specialists were still trying to figure out the exact reason, but apparently the jammers were able to operate off a frequency that only those who used magic could "sense". When activated, the results of the jamming were unpleasant to say the least. Nausea, convulsions.

Spells completely backfiring.

Whatever the reason was, the jammers worked and those who were put in rare situations where they had to use them could testify to this. The ECMs were ordered only to be used as a last resort however, the fine line between the tactic being humane or otherwise was still blurred.

In the end, all of these upgrades were made possible due to the Abram's modularity. The tank had long been designed to allow attachments to be interchangeable between either the M1A1 or M1A2. The upgrades made the tankers feel important, like for once they could actually "rate" something of top quality.

Then again, most modern vehicles had this trait. Regardless, the upgrades didn't replace the feeling of being homesick or ease the pains working on tanks brought.

It did help however, that the tankers had received all these retrofits back at Alnus. Which meant they had been able to enjoy Christmas and New Years in comfort and security, free of working on tanks for a while. Calm before the storm of course, one hell of a way to kick off the new year.

And with a surprise visit by President Obama and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe no less.

Rory shook her head before effortlessly leaping atop the tank with same grace she always had. She then promptly set her halberd down next to the CROWS system before folding her arms.

"What do you mean you can't enjoy it? The sun is out, there's plenty of food and pretty faces to go around." The apostle paused before giggling. "Well food perhaps. My knights are all spoken for, though that doesn't mean a little indulgence would hurt."

Kincaid had just popped another piece of gum into his mouth before shaking his head. "'Spoken for'? The hell are you talking about? Elton's the only one here who's 'spoken for'."

The apostle chuckled in response to this, she knew better and she knew the tankers did too.

"Is that so?" Rory's gaze slowly drifted towards Benitez, the confused driver having just put on Elton's cover. "And here I was going to congratulate George for mustering up the courage to talk to the rabbit. What was her name again?"

Rory paused as she snapped her fingers, she knew what the maid's name was.

She was just being annoying.

"Ah yes, Mamina wasn't it? Such a fiery individual, stronger and much taller than our intrepid 'driver' over here. I must say I'm impressed, perhaps she finds you amusing."

Benitez stood there fixing his collar for a moment the other tankers merely rolling their eyes in response. They knew damn well about their driver's exploits over the past few months. They had taken turns covering for him during guard duty at the tanks and taught him a few tricks while they were at it.

But Rory wasn't done, not by a long shot. She promptly switched her gaze to Wilkes.

"And you, Darian. I never pegged you as one to settle down for a woman, but I suppose Shino and yourself are just two birds of a feather. All that sparring, sneaking off into your tank to do unspeakable acts."

The rest of the crew glared at Wilkes. Another fact they were well aware of, but they had specifically told the brash loader to "Cut that shit out" multiple times. Kincaid and Elton had drawn the line knowing damn well the vulgar pair had been alternating between using their seats.

Wilkes shrugged. "Yo I said I was sorry." Then promptly pointed at the apostle's smug expression. "It's not even like that, but more importantly. Why the fuck do you know all this? Have you been watching us or some shit? I don't like being watched."

"Oh I'm simply checking on my knights. It's my job to know things Darian."

"Yo you know I hate being fucked called that."

Rory giggled. "Unless it's your woman."

Wilkes cracked his knuckles before bracing himself to climb up the front of the tank. "Yo I will knock your ass out, I don't care if you're a girl or a fucking whatever the hell you are."

Elton groaned and put a hand up as he rubbed his eyes with the other. "Bro chill, you know that's not gonna end well for you. Rory stop fucking antagonizing him. Today's not the day for the bullshit."

"Fucking hell, yeah whatever."

"But of course." Rory nodded before sliding next to Kincaid, a mischievous grin forming on her face as she leaned on him. "But you Jasper, oh you're playing a dangerous game."

She leaned closer as her voice turned into a dull murmur. "Playing with the soldier's heart when it's a Medusa's you really favor. A strange choice, but 'if the shoe fits wear it' as you people say. You two make such a cute little couple, holding hands as you teach her language. Though I shudder at what would happen if anyone learned about what happened that one nigh-"

The gunner grit his teeth as he cut her off. "I fucking told you, stop bringing Mari up. That shit back in Japan was a one time thing, I don't care for her like that."

"Then why haven't you told her the truth?"

"Because I don't want trouble. I've been avoiding her. She's already dealing with enough shit."

"Well it's obviously not working well. She's still ordering you around, still trying to get close whenever Itami and his team are in Italica. Sooner or later you'll have to drop the truth."

Rory smiled. "Or you could try to have both."

"No that's not how it works where we come from and you know damn well she wouldn't stand for that." Kincaid shot a glare at Rory. "And don't you fucking dare utter so much as a word about what happened that night."

A hollow threat at best, but the gunner wouldn't back down. If there was one thing the crew had learned about dealing with Rory, it was that one had to stand their ground if they wanted her to back off.

Meanwhile, the rest of the crew glared at the apostles mentioning of the particular event. It was one they had all agreed to never speak of, lest command completely lose it's mind. Then there'd be hell to pay for everyone in or around any of the FOBs.

Noticing the change in atmosphere, the apostle sighed before giving Kincaid's shoulder a firm squeeze. "Oh hush now Jasper, I wouldn't dare. I'm merely giving all of you a hard time."

Elton sighed. "Well respectfully, knock it off. Like I said, today's not the day."

"But everyday is 'not the day'."

" _ **Rory**_."

"Very well, very well." Rory sighed before removing herself from Kincaid's side and taking a stand atop the tank. "You know you all mean the world to me, and to Emroy as well."

Benitez merely shook his head as he lowered himself down into his driver's station, leaving the other three men to deal with the bothersome girl.

"Yeah, well why? Like, we've known you for four months now and you still haven't explained a damn thing to us about what it is you even want. Why not Itami?" Kincaid popped another piece of gum into his mouth, chewing for a few seconds before continuing. "Why don't you pester him more?"

"I do, quite a bit in fact. He's just always running off taking care of an all manner of things." Rory giggled. "Like the damaged elf. You on the other hand, are all very easy to find and even easier to irritate. Which coupled with the way you do business, simply amuses me."

She then bit her bottom lip. "It might actually amuse me in other ways too. You know, that offer still stands-"

"Alright that's enough we fucking get it, and fuck no. There's levels of fucked up even we won't go to." Elton put a hand up and made a look of disgust prompting Rory to give her best fake pout.

"So rude, perhaps Itami will be more accommodating."

"Yeah maybe, why don't you go find him?"

Rory picked up her halberd and adjusted her dress before nodding. "I intend to, well boys it's been 'a blast' as you say." With that, the apostle lept off the tank and onto the ground with her usual grace. She then did a small curtsie before making her way back to the festivities, a gaggle of nobles parting as she passed.

Once the apostle was out of earshot, Kincaid groaned. "Yeah, not for us."

Elton did the same, stretching his legs a little with a satisfying crack from atop the side of the turret. "Right? God she creeps me right the hell out. I don't care how often we've been around her, bitch is weird."

"Weird is an understatement nigguh." Wilkes nodded in agreement before raising himself up and onto the edge of the tank's front slope. "She is right though, you gotta face the music with Mari sooner or later."

Kincaid shook his head. "No, that's a bad idea. You know why, she's still dealing with the shit that happened with Tuka a while back."

Silence for a few moments.

"Yeah, I spose' you're right." Wilkes shrugged before trying to change the mood. "Yo, didn't you say Jay-Kay's boys were keeping tabs on her Four-Eyes?"

"Yeah they are, they've been watching us the whole time. Look." Kincaid gave a small gesture towards a small group of nobles who were talking to some JSDF troops.

"What? Nigguh I don't see shi-" Wilkes paused before squinting at the nobles a bit harder, prompting Elton to do the same. Upon closer inspection of the locals, the tankers began to pick out some things they didn't notice at a glance.

"Well fuck me sideways, there they are."

Small stubby black barrels jutting out of brown, almost burlap robes. The small discrete ear pieces and their coiled wires.

The combat boots and facial features of killers were the dead give away. Hiding in plain sight and unconventional operations, a MARSOC specialty. As the raiders continued to converse with the Japanese soldiers, Emerson's face emerged for but a moment among the gaggle. His eyes were glued to Rory for a few moments before he pressed a finger to his ear, no doubt communicating to some other team set up somewhere.

He then noticed the tankers staring, slowly turning to do the same. This went on for a few seconds before he smirked and nodded, the tankers doing the same in response.

A simple gesture, mutual respect between warfighters. With that, the raiders disappeared back into the festivities like ghosts.

"Well, that wasn't some fucking Liam Neeson Taken shit or anything."

The rest of the crew chuckled at Elton's remark, Kincaid's voice deepening in response. "'I will find you, and I will kill you.'"

More laughter for a few moments before something else caught their attention, all at once the laughter stopped. The issue Kincaid had briefly mentioned only a few minutes earlier.

Tuka.

The elf was once again wandering about with the same worried look she always had and in the same casual outfit given to her by Kurokawa. She wasn't any better now then she was when they had first gotten to know her. In fact, over the past few months she had gotten worse. Much worse.

What little times Kincaid was able to talk to Kurokawa revealed disheartening news. The fact he knew meant that the platoon knew as well.

Tuka was now convinced that Itami, the one who had been caring for her thus far, was her father. In the eyes of Kurokawa, the blame rested on her shoulders too, though Itami was partially to blame. It was his idea after all.

The pair had thought they could approach this problem the same way they could with anyone else. With soft spoken words and promises of better days ahead, the pair had tried to bring Tuka around, tell her the truth. It had worked with the Marines, worked with others. Surely, it would do the same with Tuka.

It only made things worse.

Neither Kurokawa nor Itami had factored just how different elves were from humans, or just how far gone the elf really was. As far as Tuka's age in elf years went, she was only a young teenager. So, much like a young teenager in an advanced stage of denial, Tuka took the truth and twisted it to suit herself. By making Itami her father.

The tankers watched on in silence as Tuka wandered about, occasionally bumping into the odd troop here and there. Eventually, she found what she was looking for, her face twisting into look of pure joy as she waved at Itami.

Elton shook his head. He knew what being a father really was and all he could see in this situation was some sort of fantasy gone horribly wrong. Part of him actually believed Tuka had developed some sort of complex, or that Itami actually enjoyed this new change of position.

"God, that shit fucking pisses me off. Someone needs to like yank her up by the collar and, fuck, I dunno man. Yell at her or something. Kick her ass? I don't know."

Kincaid went for another piece of gum, only to freeze as he realized he was out. Now, he had nothing to stave off his need to smoke. The gunner blew some air out between closed lips before going back to watching Tuka interact with Itami.

"Just leave it be man, she's beyond gone."

Elton scoffed. "Well why doesn't he just tell her the truth? I mean, I know the people here ain't the sharpest tools in the shed at times, but even a blind man can see that there's no way Itami is her dad. So, why the fuck does she think he is?"

"Cause she's fucking crazy man. Shit, she snapped when they tried to expose her to the truth before." Wilkes gave a look of indifference towards the awkward sight. "Besides, you heard she can do that magic bullshit too, lil' sis said so herself. That's a walking disaster right there."

Elton shrugged. "Well she better not. Lil' sis actually helps out with her's. Elf girl? Nah man. That shit's probably unstable as fuck. I swear on my moms I'll put one between her eyes if I think she's gonna put any of us at risk."

"I don't think it'll come to that. Mari's been keeping a close eye on her." Kincaid paused as he watched an embarrassed Itami excuse himself from talking to Aldritch and a few others before going to greet Tuka. "We shouldn't even worry about it. She hardly ever talks to us anyways. As for Itami, cut the guy some slack. It's fucked, but he's trying his best, I guess."

"Well, good. There's levels of crazy even I won't fuck with. As for Itami, his 'best' ain't fucking good enough."

"Yeah, I know how you feel about it. Just leave it be. We worry about us and our own."

"Yeah, whatever." Elton paused for a moment before snapping his fingers. "Yo, Four-Eyes."

"Yeep?"

"Didn't you stop having night terrors after Aurea. You know, after she did that thing?"

"Uh, yeah, not as much. Like, I get em once a week now. Why?" Kincaid promptly shook his head, he knew where this was going. "Okay, no. That's not gonna work."

"Why not?"

"It was a fluke, an accident." Kincaid sighed, thinking about that night brought bad memories.

But it had also laid the foundation to something much more.

"That shit's a hell of a lot different than what's going on with Tuka, not even fucking close. Besides that's just gonna draw suspicion."

Elton sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I know. She's a walking security risk 'n shit. Telling the XO was probably a stupid ass idea too, but that worked out alright in the end I guess. I tell you man, you lucky you got niggas like Rampage and I watching your back." The tank commander dropped a rock down into Benitez's station, a small yelp of confusion ringing out in response.

"And him too."

"Quite so."

"Damn right." Elton paused before shaking his head confused.

That voice didn't belong to any of his crew. No, that voice sounded more like a certain sorceress who happened to have a habit of popping up as if from thin air.

Lelei. The young girl stood in front of the tank with the same blank expression she always had, the crew sitting there dumbfounded for a few moments.

"Lil' sis, didn't we tell you not to do that?"

"Yes."

"Then why do you keep doing it? You can always wave, say what's up or something. You know you're cool with us."

"I know."

Elton exchanged confused looks with Wilkes and Kincaid, Benitez's head slowly emerging from his station. "Uh, so then why do you keep doing it?"

Lelei smiled, a new habit she began to exercise more over the past few months. "Because scaring my older brothers is fun."

"Now that's just diabolical." Elton smiled. "But that's why you lil' sis."

Little sis. That was the name the Four Horsemen had given Lelei as they had gotten to know her more. There was something endearing about the girl, the way she always hung out around them just for conversation. The way she tried to help out whenever they were working on the tanks, even going so far as to don a pair of oversized coveralls she had swiped from somewhere.

Aldritch had caved in at that sight, allowing the mage to only work on the most basic of first echelon maintenance tasks. The way she was able to lift a few heavy objects may have also been a factor.

Lelei had developed a sort of affinity for technology over the past few months. She enjoyed just about anything and everything that came from beyond the gate. Her experiences in Tokyo had opened her eyes to the world of science, her affinity for learning also playing a big role.

To the tankers, her dream of combining science and magic sounded like a bad science experiment waiting to happen, and a few often joked about Lelei having some sort of evil Hollywood level scheme. A theory largely put to the side with laughter, the men were good judges of character after all.

Thus the nickname "Lil' Sis Lelei" was born.

To Lelei, the nickname was nothing short of satisfying to hear. She always spoke of an older sister, but never of brothers or even friends she had before the gate opened. The tankers had welcomed her with open arms and even taken time out of their day to listen to her lectures.

The intelligent ones anyways. Either way, she was part of their family now.

Something she had never had before.

"May I climb aboard? My feet are quite sore from walking around." Lelei's gaze drifted towards the ever inviting front slope of the tank. In moments, Wilkes effortlessly picked her up and set her down on the front slope with a grin.

"Thank you, Wilkes."

"Anytime, lil' sis."

As Lelei got comfortable, Kincaid raised an eyebrow at the sorceress. "Say, you didn't hear what we were talking about did you?"

"If I did, it's not my place to discuss the matters of my older brothers. Especially not with Aurea. You know her species is very rare, Jasper. You're quite lucky." Lelei paused to give a smug expression. "Perhaps you'll help with that. You know, they share a fertility rate with the rabbits."

The sorceress put a finger under her chin as she raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps a survival mechanism? Born from the purge they experienced?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes as the rest of the crew chuckled. "Uh, yeah I dunno about that." He then shot a glare at Benitez. "Bro, you shouldn't even be joining in. You heard what she said. You fuck up once and it's gonna be a wrap, dog. You're Hispanic too."

Benitez stopped laughing. "What the hell does that mean?"

"Means you already breed like fucking cockroaches. You and Mamina might single handedly repopulate the entire rabbit population. Fucking brown ass rabbit kids moving fast as fuck 'n shit, jumping compound walls. How do you say rabbit in Spanish?"

" _Hermano_ , that's some racist boobatoo ass shit." Benitez scowled for a few moments. " _Conejo_."

"What?"

" _Conejo_ is Spanish for rabbit."

Kincaid put on a shit eating grin as his voice took on a mock Hispanic accent. "Eyy Conejo! You uh trying to bachata? Eh? Bailar con mi?!"

"Bro stop you're butchering my fucking language."

"And you're butchering the tracks everytime you drive. You fucking suck."

"Yo eat my ass, you fuckers ordered me to run that fucking ogre over."

Elton raised an eyebrow. "Nigga what about the time you fell asleep and almost made us drive off the road and into that fucking ancient burial site?"

Wilkes chuckled as he quoted the radio chatter that day. "'Ey yo, Little John you good?' 'No, no me gusta..' 'Bro fucking staaaahp!'"

Benitez raised his arms in confusion. "Bruh! I had like fuckin three hours of sleep the night before, you guys drank all the fucking coffee too!"

"Well maybe if you hadn't been banging the goddamn bunny that same night."

"What the fuck is this? Pick on the driver day? Ya'll a bunch of fuck asses I swear."

Lelei ignored the back and forth staring to develop as she put a finger under her chin and stretched her legs. "Perhaps Jasper is right, but there's only way to find out. Science will find a way."

All the tankers paused. "Lil' sis..."

"I jest." She paused before smirking as she uttered her next line in perfect English. "Mah niggas."

One of the many new phrases she had picked up from being around Marines too much.

Wilkes scoffed. "Yo lil sis, that was corny as hell."

Kincaid put on a sly smile. "Don't take that shade Lelei. Call him a grape ape having ass biatch."

Lelei's face remained perfectly blank as she repeated the phrase. Grape ape having as bee-atch."

The crew erupted into laughter before Elton calmed things down, they were starting to attract too much attention. "Alright, since we're not gonna get to eat anything good. Guess it's MREs. Lil' sis, you want anything?"

"No, I was able to eat. If you give me a few moments more, I'll look into bringing something back for you."

All of the tankers wanted to prostrate themselves before Lelei, only stopping themselves due to how embarrassing of a sight it'd be.

"Little Sis Lelei, always coming in clutch."

* * *

 **1200 HOURS BRAVO POSITION**

"God damn, this is fucking boring. Everyone's off playing meet n greet and we're out here, yet again, being dicked in the ass."

"'Dicked in the ass?' Corporal Boyd, what do you mean? We are out here standing guard in order to ensure the meetings proceed as planned. We are not being 'dicked' in any way."

"Fel, darlin', it's a figure of speech. You've been working with us for what…" Boyd looked back over his shoulder. "Hey William, how long's Fel been workin' with us now?"

"'Bout two months."

"Yeah two months. Come on now, I know you've caught onto some of our lingo."

Felicia cocked her head to the side, her ears jutting out of her custom boonie cover and twitching. "'Lingo?'"

Boyd shook his head before stepping away from the tree. "It means this sucks, it's not fun."

"But this is fine too isn't it? It's a beautiful day." The cat human took a deep breath before sighing. "Besides, I hate royalty, so close minded and ignorant. I would face nothing but discrimination among them."

Davey barked happily from atop his perch next to Felicia, the cat human giggling as she scratched his head. "See? Davey agrees."

Boyd sighed and gave the pair atop the MRAP's hood a thumbs up. "Yeah, yeah. I'm sure he does."

Van Hauser paused from looking at a map, standing slowly and bracing himself against one of the vehicle's massive tires. "He probably said, stop bitching and get back to looking through your scope."

"Of course he did." The marksman scoffed before putting his kevlar back on. He paused for a moment as he took a look at one of the Abrams tanks that had been assigned to their section. The massive vehicle had been pushed further back into the woods, makeshift camouflage consisting of broken branches and bushes scattered all about its front in an effort to hide its tan features.

The tank's engine was off, the only signs of life coming from the occasional crewman emerging to do any odd number of things or the turret slowly traversing.

"'Cry Sum Moar'? Yeah, real motivating."

Van Hauser rolled his eyes as he shooed one of Felicia's boots away from tapping against his kevlar. "Boyd, why don't you go reenlist and lat move into tanks then? Then you can name your tank whatever you want. 'Bitch Sum Moar' sounds about right."

Some of the Marines and Japanese troops nearby laughed, Boyd grumbling in response. "Yeah, fuck that." With that, the marksman made his way off to join the tank and bother their crew. The group worked well all things considered. The tank crew could feed him ranges using its laser range finder, Boyd could keep them company and hit things they didn't need to waste ammo on.

Evidently the tank commander hailed from Georgia as well.

As Boyd disappeared from ear shot Van Hauser sighed. "I gotta admit though, I've done far more glamorous jobs."

Felicia's ears perked up. "Such as when we distributed gifts from all the kids back home in your world for Christ-mas?"

Van Hauser smiled remembering that day. A large charity operation had been in the works back in the United States for a while, children of various service members sent soccerballs and all sorts of toys from earth along with letters and photos. It had not only further bridged the gap between the citizens of Falmart and the coalition troops, but also between that of the beastmen and humans. Felicia had been with Van Hauser's unit and some of the peacekeepers that day, helping translate letters and coordinating with various team leaders.

She had loved every minute of it, it had also helped cement her place in becoming their new interpreter.

After that, a large Christmas feast had been set up in the Alnus refugee area. Everyone both troop and citizen alike came together and celebrated in their own way. For the locals it was chance to see the sort of culture the troops hailed from, for the troops it was another chance to get some good food in their bellies and just take their minds off the campaign for a little while.

Then of course it was a chance for everyone to be utterly shocked once it was revealed who had personally requested it all, President Obama and Shinzo Abe. The same president and prime minister who decided to make their presence known in messhall just as everyone had sat down to eat. Once a lengthy speech had been given, the two leaders sat amongst their troops letting them know they hadn't been forgotten and just how important their efforts were.

Following that they went around and even got to meet some of the locals, including a very flabbergasted Princess Piña Co Lada. All under the watchful eyes of their security detail of course.

"Yeah, that was nice wasn't it? Reminds me of some missions I used to do back on previous deployments. But hell, even that beats dog and ponies."

Felicia dropped down from the MRAP and next to Van Hauser. "'Dog and ponies?'"

"Figure of speech Fel. Means putting on a good show."

"Why would you do that? Is the Empire not your enemy? Why would you bother showing them anything William?" Felicia clenched her fists. "It's because of them that so many have suffered, including my own kind. It's their fault this war is even dragging on."

"Because that's just how we do business. Doing things like this shows the people we're not their enemy, shows them it's better to work with us. My country tries it's best to."

Van Hauser paused before sighing. "I'd like to think my country tries its best to only get involved in places when we absolutely need to. We're supposed to uphold a sense of right, help people. We didn't start this war Fel, but you'll be damned sure we'll end it. If we can save some more lives, get people to understand why we're here? Have them side with us and maybe help their leaders see reason? It'll be worth it."

Or they'll wind up starting a rebellion. That usually works too.

Felicia smiled before looking around, ensuring nobody was watching too closely. Satisfied, she slowly held Van Hauser's gloved hand in her own.

"I believe you William. I always have, since the moment you rescued me." She slowly reached under her plate carrier and exposed the small shine of the necklace the lieutenant had bought her. "For what it's worth, this war brought you to me. I'll never regret that."

"Yeah and now here you are working as our interpreter." Van Hauser gave Felicia's hand a small squeeze before letting go and giving her some space, a smirk forming on his face. "Look at you wearing our gear too. Gotta say, I still haven't gotten used to that."

Felicia chuckled, her tail shaking slightly faster. "Well I'd like to think I pull it off better."

"Sure, whatever you say."

"Bravo, this is Alpha. Radio check over."

Van Hauser rolled his eyes at the sound of his radio going off, putting the moment on hold to respond. "Bravo, this is Alpha. Lima charlie."

"Read you same same, see anything yet?"

The officer glanced over at Boyd, the marksman paused from looking down his scope atop the tank before shaking his head. "Negative, clear on our end."

"Tango, Alpha out."

The lieutenant sighed as he finished the radio check, he then shouldered his M4. "Alright Fel, I'm gonna go chat with the Japanese. If you smell anything odd, you let me know."

The cat girl nodded, giving her usual fanged smile. "Of course, dear."

"Hey, we're on the clock. You know the rule, save that for our time."

"Sorry." Felicia winked and whispered. "Dear."

As Van Hauser made his way over towards one of the concealed Komatsu's, he turned around and pointed a finger at the cat human. "Mmk, I'll remember that tonight." He then silently mouthed.

"Dearest."

"Good, you better."

* * *

 **JADE PALACE**

Aldritch excused himself from the meetings going on between Piña and the ambassadors, his new goal being Itami. The Japanese captain had just sent Tuka off, his smile fading to a look of solemn depression as he turned around and made his way back.

"Youji, you good?"

Itami's chest heaved with a sigh as Aldritch came closer, pausing to rub his exhausted eyes. "I've been better." He gave Tuka one last glance, watching her until she met up with Kurokawa. The pair chatted for a few moments before wandering off to get into whatever it was the medic had planned.

"Am I doing the right thing?"

"Come again?"

"Am I doing the right thing? Letting this go on the way it is?"

Aldritch took his cover off for a moment, scratching his hair for a few moments before returning the cover to its rightful place. "Honestly, I don't know. Part of me thinks you could have gone about it a better way. I think a lot of the men think the same thing too. The situation unnerves them Youji, I won't lie to you."

"Well, what was I supposed to do? Just let her keep looking for someone that isn't alive?" Itami put his hands up in an expression of disbelief. "How was I supposed to know how far gone she is?"

"You didn't let me finish. Part of me says that, but the other part of me thinks you didn't have a choice. Maybe this is just one step closer to her coming around. Maybe."

"And what if it isn't? What if she just keeps falling farther and farther?"

"Well then there's nothing you can do. Respectfully, our mission here is to bring an end to this conflict. Not fix broken families or bring elves with PTSD back to normalcy."

Itami's face twisted into one of disbelief. "James, how can you say something like that? How are you going to tell me what we should or shouldn't be doing? I know damn well your men have been sneaking out at late hours to go meet with maids or locals. Do you know how hard it is to keep Mari from talking about that damn Medusa? She constantly thinks Kincaid and her are off having nightly rendezvous. You know her suspicions aren't wrong, don't you?"

"Even if I did, where's your proof my men have been doing any of that?"

"Oh come on. I know they've been doing it because my men have been doing the same god damn thing. Kurata finally mustered the courage to go talk to Persia—you can thank your guys for giving him whatever pep talk they did."

Aldritch suppressed a smirk. He had heard about that. This was a serious moment, however, so he kept himself composed while Itami continued.

"Bozes and Tomita might have a thing too. James, she's royalty. Do you have any idea what the implications of that could be?"

"Why aren't you stopping it then? Why aren't you stopping any of it?"

"Because it's not the right thing to do? Because you haven't been stopping your men either?"

"Bull shit."

"No, no you know I'm right. You probably do the same thing I do. You don't care so long as it doesn't impact mission performance. Three strike rule right?" Itami glared. "And you're not even on strike one yet, not even after what almost happened to Kincaid. That took a lot of guts you know? Him coming to you like that. He almost died James. Aurea's a potential security risk and we both know that, but a part of you doesn't want to subject her to that. That certainly goes against SOP doesn't it?"

Itami smiled. "You do have a heart, don't deny that. Then of course there's the way you look at Piña—"

Aldritch clenched his fists. "Get to the point Youji."

"We've been here for four months, missed countless holidays and seen more fucked things than any normal men should. The line between SOP and making this place a temporary home for us is blurring more and more each day."

Itami paused and gestured to the festivities going on. Aldritch watched as interpreters both non human and otherwise chatted with the troops like they were old friends. Curious kids tugged on troops' trousers, prompting the men and women to take a knee in order to address them better. A few noblemen shook hands with officers before laughing as the occasional child tried to wear an oversized helmet.

"We're becoming a part of this world, James, and it's becoming a part of us. We're speaking their language almost fluently now, I never even thought I'd learn more than Japanese and English. I know this is my first deployment, but even I know nothing is going to be the same after this campaign is done. You come from a nation that knows war, a branch that thrives in it. You've lost brothers, seen the veterans come home. How does this compare to that? You can't keep trying to bring reason to a situation that's rich without it."

Aldritch remained silent for a few moments. His mind reflecting on everything Itami had said. Deep down a small part of him knew the Japanese officer was right. He had been guilty of it too, training with Piña and her knights had turned into games of football.

"For better or for worse, this is our home for now. Every person we interact with counts, every smile we bring, every home we save. It all means something and I know your men agree. Christ James we celebrated Christmas _**and**_ New Years with them back at Alnus. Holidays they've never even experienced before. I know you haven't forgotten that. Doesn't it feel good to be heroes for once? To feel like you're doing something nobody can really question?"

Aldritch sighed. "Yes, yes it does. But that doesn't mean we can get too lax Youji. We're still at war, behind some of these smiles you cherish so much can be a knife in the back. Take it from someone who's heard the stories, seen guys not come back because of it."

The captain watched as his tankers interacted with Lelei. The young sorceress had indeed been smiling a lot more since they first met her. "My goal is to bring my men home alive, that matters to me above all things. I will not be the officer who has to write a letter to some young man's family telling them their precious son spilled blood in another world."

"And if you do? What will you tell them? That they died for a good cause, brought worlds together?"

 _Even if the rumor has it that their souls will go to a very real god?_

There was silence for a few moments before Itami shook his head. "That's why what happens with Tuka matters to me. Look, lets just get back to these delegations, we still have a show of force to get through later."

Before Itami could pass Aldritch, the Marine put a hand on his shoulder. "I would go to hell and back for my men. You don't know what they go through on a daily basis Youji. I might let some things slide, if it keeps them from going insane. But don't mistake my kindness for weakness."

He looked at Itami. "I'm just doing what I can to keep this wheel turning."

"Well aren't we both? My men may not be breaking their bodies working on tanks, but they're certainly experiencing stresses of their own. You know Kuwahara is going to be a grandfather right? He won't even get to see his granddaughter till who knows when."

The two stared into each other's eyes for a few moments until finally Itami sighed. "You're a good man, James, and deep down you know I am too. I may not come from a military who knows how to 'kick ass and take names', but I still know a thing or two about people. Learning hasn't just been going on between us and the locals you know."

Aldritch gave a respectful nod. With that, the two officers made their way back to Piña and the others. Thankfully, it looked like they had arrived at a good time, the princess looked like as if she'd seen a ghost.

 **XXXXXXX**

Piña and the other noblemen accompanying her's voices rang off at once. "Five hundred million suwani?!"

"Yes. We also ask that the Empire accepts responsibility for the attack on our world and brings those responsible forward. Following that you will enter into a trade agreement with not only Japan." Sugawara paused and nodded towards Kroger. "But our American allies as well."

Piña tried her best to keep her composure, ignoring the confused looks of a recently arrived Aldritch and Itami. "But, Ambassador Sugawara, there's not enough money in the world to pay that amount. Surely you jest? That would kill us!"

Kroger raised an eyebrow at the utterly shocked expressions of the Imperials. Unlike the Japanese ambassador, his understanding of the local language wasn't as in depth. He muttered to Sugawara under his breath. "I'm guessing that's an amount far beyond what they're capable of?"

"Seems to be the case."

"Well, tell them we're open to negotiations. Right now the most important thing is for us to get them to hear us out. My government has been helping you rebuild, we can cover that cost. As nice as monetary reparations would be, we need to take this thing one step at time."

Sugawara nodded before returning his attention to the Imperials. "Perhaps I was a bit, blunt, in our demands. We are open to a fair agreement as far as reparations are concerned."

"And the prisoners?" One of the noblemen leaned forward. "Do you still intend to return them?"

"Yes, we will our honor our terms of the agreement. So long as you honor yours." Sugawara folded his arms, his expression twisting into one of utmost seriousness. "When we deem that it is fair for both parties."

The royalty muttered amongst themselves, a few of Piña's bodyguard standing in the background craned their necks slightly in an effort to listen in. After a few minutes, one of the noblemen nodded.

"We will need some time to go over the terms and arrange some form of compensation that doesn't starve our economy. When we come to an agreement, we will inform you. Then we can arrange a time for official peace negotiations."

Kroger and Sugawara nodded. "That sounds fair." As they got up from their seats, Kroger reached across the stone table. "Gentlemen, thank you for today. Both my country as well as the Japanese wish to see this conflict come to an appropriate close."

As Sugawara finished translating, one of the noblemen took a step forward and clasped the ambassador's hand in his own. "Mister Kroger, believe me when I say that not all of us wish to see the destruction of our world or the Empire. We are thankful that factions as powerful as your own are willing to even have these talks in the first place."

More translation before Kroger nodded in kind. "To represent the free world is to represent democracy and fairness, two things the United States of America prides itself on. As do our Japanese allies."

Kroger paused after Sugawara translated once more, giving a small smile. "Now I think our boys have a bit of a show they'd like to put on display for you."

The noblemen exchanged confused looks before a small voice rang out. "Mister Sugawara! Mister Sugawara!"

"Oh no, not this again." Sugawara muttered as a small girl made her way over towards the group of adults. She excused herself as she squeezed between some confused looking Marines.

She was a spritely thing, garbed in a dark red dress that exposed her shoulders. Her pearl necklace and shoulder length blonde hair led many of the troops there to believe she was royalty.

They weren't wrong.

As the young girl made her way to the two ambassadors, she paused to bow her head. "Good afternoon honored guests, I am Sherry from the Tyueli family."

The troops exchanged confused looks as Piña whispered to a nearby Aldritch. "Her family has a great deal of influence, and it just so happens that—"

"Mister Sugawara, I've been looking for you everywhere! I wanted to thank you for the necklace you gave me. I will cherish it always."

Piña smiled before continuing. "It just so happens that she may have developed some sort of crush for mister Sugawara. No doubt due to the gift he gave her."

The Marine rolled his eyes. "I don't know whether or not to think that's cute or incredibly disgusting. You know that sort of thing is considered wrong in our world right?"

"A young girl can dream can't she? Dream of her knight from far away who's come to sweep her off her feet and bring her happiness she's never experienced? Help her more than anyone ever has?" Piña's voice seemed to drift off as she watched Sherry bother the nervous ambassador.

Aldritch sighed. "Beliefs are fine, acting on them isn't. He can get in a great deal of trouble for that."

"Well, perhaps if they wait? What if when the time is right? When the conflict is over and they're both wiser for it?"

"Come again?"

"Nothing."

As things began to calm down, Kroger gave Sugawara a confused look. "What did she say?"

"N-nothing."

One of the nearby Marines muttered. "She was thanking him for the necklace she was wearing sir."

As Kroger scratched his head in confusion Aldritch's radio came to life. "Horsemen One Actual this is Four Actual. Looks like we're getting ready to kick this thing off."

Aldritch groaned. More work to be done. "Solid, I'm on my way." He glanced at Itami. "Your people tracking?"

The Japanese officer nodded in response. "They should be, I gave them the time."

"Right, well you should probably let them know anyways."

As the two officers and other troops began to make their way out of the meeting area, Sherry tugged at Sugawara's arm. "Where is everyone going?"

The nervous Japanese ambassador sighed. "Our military is about to put on a bit of a… " He paused trying to find a good word to describe the massive amount of ordinance about to be dropped.

"Show."

"May I come see?"

 _No, considering it's mean to put the fear of god into the noblemen. Show them what's going to happen if the war keeps dragging on._

"That's probably not a good idea.."

Sherry pouted. "Please?"

Kroger chuckled as he began to be escorted by Marines. "If she wants to come let her. Just let her know what she's getting herself into."

"Ugh." Sugawara groaned before nodding his head. "Fine."

* * *

 **SADERA, IMPERIAL CAPITAL, AKUSHO DISTRICT, OUTPOST GOMORRAH**

Recker crushed another small can of Monster before going back to looking over some maps and the grainy video feeds from drones doing fly overs. It was the biggest clash of modern and medieval if the operator had ever seen it.

Various pieces of equipment sat organized on simple wooden tables and against wooden walls. The occasional operator muttered something as he manned a radio while others tried to make due with MREs as they sat on simple cloth couches. Meanwhile, other operators both Japanese and American kept a close eye on small gaps in between wooden boards nailed over windows.

The occasional floorboard creaked above Recker's head as other inhabitants moved around on the floor above, causing small particles of dust to drift down and settle on the tables and anything else.

It was hardly five star lodging, but it was also discrete. Which was what all the operators wanted, especially after they had made it so.

Things had been like this ever since Recker and his team infiltrated the capital with the Japanese commandos. Days were spent going over plans and taking shifts with Saber or Archer, and sleeping anywhere that wouldn't arouse suspicion.

Night time was play time, when the operators preferred to do business.

The enemy lacked night vision devices and without torches, there were entire areas of the city that were often basked in complete darkness. Good for the operators, terrible for the Imperial patrols.

Their mission was simple; blend in with the local populace, gather intel, neutralize or capture high valued targets. Finally, "Put the fear of god into the enemy" as Augustine himself had told them over radio.

Psychological warfare, something they carried out every time they left whatever temporary residence they called home. Ambushing patrols, leaving messages spray painted on walls near Imperial garrisons, taking out high ranking officers and even occasionally playing vigilante for those who needed help. Anything that wasn't against the Geneva Convention was on the playing field.

It was fun work, well at least to them. Some of the operators had joked that they had become a sort of pseudo Batman, punishing villains and helping those in need.

Well, if Batman used guns.

Indeed an all manner of rumors and superstitious folklore began to spring up. Mothers told children to behave lest the "Wraiths of justice whisk them away." Imperial patrols would flat out avoid entire areas of the city at night, venturing ahead only with ogres lest they vanish like their comrades before them. Not like the ogres could stop the operators.

Fun work.

Resupply was when things got tricky. Teams would have to rotate out of the city in order to pick up supplies air dropped at predetermined coordinates. There was good rumor that the same stealth helicopters used during the Osama raid would eventually be shipped through the gate to help alleviate this problem.

It made sense considering the operators were also told by "a reliable source" that a pair of the new F-35s were going to be assisting the coalition in the coming weeks. How they'd make it through the gate without sending off alarm signals in mainstream media was anyone's guess.

With the wyvern patrols that had started flying sorties above the capital however, nobody was sure whether or not the option of sending helicopters in was still on the table. Even with stingers and air support readily available should they need it, the operators were reluctant to cause anymore hell with explosives after a few close calls they had with ogres. That had woken up half the damn city up each time.

Fun work.

Of course there were far less threatening things that would wind up annoying the operators.

It wouldn't be until a few weeks prior to today that the operators would be ordered to establish a permanent outpost. Command wanted a foothold in the capital, a place that would be able to sustain a small covert base of operations. There would be a time when a much bigger coalition presence would be needed in the capital, a forward outpost would be able to help coordinate such a move. After some searching, the operators found such a place.

They had chanced upon the small unimpressive two story building in a slums district known as Akusho. The reasoning behind choosing such a location was two fold. One, the likelihood of the Imperials caring about such an area were slim to none. Two, the building was tucked away and set in such a position that made it easily defendable. It had one entrance and was built against one of the capital's many stone walls that separated districts.

So one night, under the cover of darkness and rain, the operation was kicked off.

While the Japanese commandos provided rear guard and overwatch, the SEALs made their way over to the building to clear it out. By some odd chance of fate, it just so happened that the building was none other than a brothel. The operators only figured that out once they conducted the world's quietest breaching operation.

Imperial soldiers in various states of undress, females of just about every species imaginable in more or less the same state. Once the operators were in, their fates were sealed. None of the Imperial troops could leave alive and all of the girls would have to be detained there in order to not give away what had happened.

It started with the sounds of suppressed weapon fire. It ended with the sounds of bodies hitting the ground and terrified comfort girls frozen with fear at the sight of men with multiple green eyes over hidden faces. By another odd chance of fate, the SEALs had actually wound up saving the very same girls. Things had just started to spiral out of control by the time the operators had gotten there. The Imperials had declined to pay and were drunk, it went without saying what was bound to happen next.

So a deal was made. The comfort women could continue to live there while under the protection of both the Americans and Japanese. In return, they would act as another set of eyes and ears. They knew the surrounding area even better than the operators did having lived there their entire lives

Thus Outpost Gommorah was established.

It was a good gig, especially once the local populace believed the place was haunted. The first few groups of Imperial troops that had tried to investigate the disappearance of their comrades simply vanished without a trace. The same fate befell a local shaman who been finally sent to "cleanse the place of evil spirits".

Once that happened, all bets were off. No brothel was was worth losing lives over, especially with plenty of others in the capital. So the people left it alone. Good for the operators, bad for the girls. They had to go conduct their business elsewhere when they went out.

Which meant that heads always butted.

"Ma'am, that's a restricted area we can't let you-"

"Restricted? Please, were it not for us you wouldn't even have had this 'restricted area'."

Recker sighed as he heard the familiar voice enter the room, causing the other operators present to all glance at the source of the commotion. Not looking away from the maps, Recker addressed the voice's owner. "Were it not for us, you'd be dead Mizari. You and the rest of the girls."

"Well, excuse a girl for wanting to be abreast of what's going on. Knowledge is power here in Akusho, we know this best."

"Well so do we."

"Is that so? Even after all we've shared with you?" Mizari giggled. "More than knowledge too."

A few nervous coughs ushered forth from some of the operators present before Recker turned around disgruntled. The woman in front of him had taken him by surprise the first time he had met her. She had all the features of a normal human being with the exception of one thing.

Wings, the same not unlike what an angel would have in biblical stories. Coupled with her shoulder length blonde hair, angelic features and loose fitting robes she almost looked like an angel too. In fact, one of Recker's men had almost knelt in prayer when he had seen her.

Until he noticed the pointed ears and remembered the fact that she was in a brothel. Still, there was no telling what sort of impact she'd have on any other spiritually devout Americans back at Alnus.

"I thought I told you to keep yourself and your girls away from my men. You want to mess around with the Japanese, go right ahead."

One of the Japanese operators, a lieutenant Katsumoto, had been sleeping right before Mizari's scene. The older Japanese officer had been leaning against a wall as he sat on a simple wooden chair, he muttered from under his olive drab boonie cover at Recker's statement.

"No thanks, we're not cowboys like you guys are."

Recker rolled his eyes. "Sure you're not, why did my corpsmen have to take a look at one of your guys a week ago then?"

Katsumoto chuckled. "Fair enough. But still, I've been keeping my boys on a tight leash since then."

"So have I." Recker glared at Mizari. "We're not the only ones who need to be practicing self control."

The woman giggled before folding her arms, her wings spreading slightly behind her. "Recker, we're whores. We sleep with men for money, can you blame us? You'll have to excuse me, we're not used to providing services for free."

"And I told you, my superiors are thankful and have offered you asylum in Alnus should you need it. When this is all over, you'll be more than properly compensated."

The angel girl stood there for a few moments before eyeing the SEAL top to bottom with a smile. "I have a few ideas."

"No thanks. One, I'm on the clock, two I don't want what you're selling."

"Sure you don't, but I'm sure one of the fine men here in this room wouldn't argue."

There were some more nervous coughs followed by the exchange of confused looks before Recker rubbed his forehead in annoyance. "Look Mizari, what do you want?"

The woman smirked, she clearly knew something the operators didn't. She always did this before passing some information along. "Well, you might want to check your strange windows and talk to your men."

Recker raised an eyebrow. "Why's that? Nothing's acting up."

"Well then, why is it one of my girls has informed me that Crown Prince Zorzal is riding out of the palace?"

"Bull shit, nothing goes on without us knowing about it."

"Evidently not."

All the operators almost leapt from their seats, Katsumoto coughing up a storm as he almost fell out of his chair as Recker turned to look at the video screens. Sure enough, one of the drone's camera feeds revealed the thermal silhouettes of a few men including Zorzal riding out of the palace on horseback. Evidently the sniper team overwatching the palace had been in the process of relocating when it happened.

Recker cursed before picking glancing at one of the radio operators. "Tell command, now!"

The SEAL merely nodded before switching to a different channel on the radios. "Alnus Main, Alnus Main this is Outpost Gommorah. Be advised, Little Caesar is leaving the palace."

In seconds one of the Marines at Camp Alnus's CP responded. "Say again your last?"

"Little Casear is leaving the palace. Crown Prince Zorzal is leaving the palace."

"Copy your last, we see him on drone two's feed. Do you have ground visual on him?"

Recker shook his head before facepalming. "We don't have anyone in the area he's going through." He glanced at Katsumoto, the Japanese lieutenant shaking his head in response. "Nor do we."

The SEAL operating the radios nodded. "That's a negative."

"Copy your last, we'll continue to monitor."

All the operators watched as the small screen continued to follow Zorzal and his entourage, the drone continued to track him as the group left the Capital itself and continued down a small dirt road.

"Hey boss, wasn't there some sort of meet and greet going on today? Jade Palace or something? Isn't that the same direction he's going in?"

Recker slammed a gloved fist on the table as he double checked one of the maps. "Jesus Christ, yeah it fucking is. Let em know they're about to have company."

Mizari merely chuckled before leaving the operators to deal with the new stressful change of events.

"You're welcome Recker."

"Yeah whatever."

As Mizari left, Recker threw his crushed Monster can at a wall. "This is the last fucking thing I needed. We've got more people we gotta sneak in tonight and Little Caesar sneaking out under our noses. So much for fucking intel."

* * *

 **OUTSKIRTS OF JADE PALACE  
**

In a large field not too far away from the Jade palace, it looked as though the very gates of hell itself had been opened. The noblemen and other guests continued to watch with their mouths agape as the coalition brought some its various weapons of war to bear.

 _Here We Go Again_ conducted maneuver drills as it crested hills, its various weapon systems engaging pre set cardboard targets. The war machine looked as though it was gliding effortlessly over the terrain. The tank's turret rapidly traversing left and right as targets were called out, its projectiles hitting their mark both static or while it was on the move.

Meanwhile, infantry teams both American and Japanese would move up beside it in order to demonstrate the power of combined arms. The tank would move forward, letting fly with its weapons before pausing to let the infantry bound up to it from prone positions. Mortar teams closer to the spectators let loose ordinance of their own, instructing the ground teams further away to hold back before proceeding.

At the height of it all, a new breed of terror came from the sky with a thunderous roar not unlike the flame dragon. With every war cry, giant flashes kicked up from the ground scattering earth and debris everywhere. While the local spectators covered their ears in terror, the troops hooped and hollered cries of "Get some."

A-10 Thunderbolt IIs'. These ones hailed from the 25th Fighter Squadron at Osan South Korea, "The Dragons of Assam"

Four had been sent through the gate only a few weeks prior and they had already made their impact on this new world. Designed to counter the possibility of massive Soviet Armored pushes in Western Europe during the cold war, a war that never happened. Nevertheless, the planes had long established their reputation worldwide as an airframe to be feared during countless conflicts.

Though there weren't any tanks to be destroyed in Falmart, the A-10s had plenty of "armored" ground targets to deal with all the same. Their display here wasn't their first debut either. From ogres to bandit camps, the aircraft had long established itself as the new apex predator of this world.

A position previously held by the Flame Dragon, the reason the aircraft were sent here in the first place. They could loiter in an area of operations for far longer, and cause much greater damage than the other aircraft the Coalition had brought.

Their impact on troop morale was also unquestionable and even the Japanese troops always felt safer knowing the "Hogs" were watching over. Many considered their deployment to be overkill, but many others knew that should another large scale attack like Alnus happen.

These jets alone could route the entire force.

Sugawara felt Sherry's grip on his arm tighten as one of the A-10's did a low fly over before soaring into the sky with a screech. As the yells of various troops began to die down, Kroger made his way over to the Japanese ambassador with a grin.

"That's good ole' fashioned American firepower right there. Gets the blood pumping doesn't it?"

Sugawara calmed Sherry down before watching as the two A-10's participating in the event began to fly away. "I suppose so, but tell me. Do we really need them? How far are we willing to go for victory here?"

Kroger folded his arms. "Far enough, I'm a politician not a military planner. I leave questions like that to those who know better than myself Sugawara. If those aircraft are here, it's for good reason." He paused before shaking his head. "Tell me, why was it your country requested us here? Mutual Defense Treaty aside, the terrible deaths of some of our citizens aside. Why?"

The Japanese ambassador watched as the coalition troops began to make their way back from the fields beyond, a few of the troops riding atop the Abrams as it kicked up terrain behind it.

"I don't know, perhaps they were hesitant to send our troops off without assistance. They didn't want our military's first deployment to end in disaster?"

"Or perhaps it was because they knew us being here would guarantee victory. Guarantee your stake in this world."

"What?"

Kroger looked at Sugawara, an expression of utmost seriousness beginning to form on his face. "Sugawara, you know damn well there's a good chance your military could've handled this alone. With our bases outside there's no chance anyone would dare to take advantage of your troop movements. We have one of the biggest seats in the UN too, we could keep the heat off you there too."

"What are you trying to say Kroger?" Sugawara stood there confused for a few moments. "That we brought you through here because victory is so paramount to us? The chance for getting our hands on materiel that could potentially increase our standing in our world so important? We're sharing that with you, don't tell me you forgot what was discussed with Piña. You're here because we want you here, need you to help us understand all the nuances behind a campaign like this. Training and practical application are two different things Kroger, you know that as well as I. Your country has years of war under its belt, mine doesn't. Our troops don't necessarily know how to handle something like this, and something tells me yours are still trying to figure this campaign out too."

The American ambassador stood there silently for a few moments, glancing at Sherry before returning his attention to Sugawara. Finally, he sighed before taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes.

"I apologize. When you've been in this line of work for so long, it always feels like there's more behind the scenes." Kroger slowly returned his glasses before fixing his robes. "I get tired of seeing my country at war, it feels like we always have to be somewhere. You know who suffers the most? The ones who get the most flack?"

Kroger gestured towards the troops. "They do, young men trying to make something of themselves. They believe in a cause, believe in our way of life. Something inside them tells them to put that uniform on, grab a rifle and defend our nation or the freedoms of another. I don't care what anyone says, that's true bravery. To enlist in a time of war or when things are at their most controversial, that's dedication Sugawara."

The ambassador paused as he rubbed his eye. "Politics is a murky business, I'm sure you know it too. The average citizen doesn't understand what's going on, doesn't listen to anything beyond what media tells them. If Facebook or some Social Justice Warrior on twitter says we hide missiles in preschools, they'll believe it. If a politician makes a wrong move, he must be condemned. If a general orders an airstrike on a target and even after countless checks it's still a bad hit? All troops are baby killers. These people would judge the actions of men and women who go out in the world and try to make things happen, these same people who are perfectly content to live comfortable lives. Why bother enlisting? Why bother running for office? It's easier to criticize than try and help. I'm not saying we're perfect, but for god's sake if they can do it better why don't they?"

Sugawara went to say something before he noticed Kroger wipe his eye once more.

A tear.

"My son died in Afghanistan Sugawara. Twenty-one years old and he died, mortar strike on his FOB. When people sit back and try to formulate their twisted opinions on why we go where we go, these same people who do nothing for our country both militarily or politically. I feel like it just takes a big shit all over men like my son."

Sugawara looked down at Sherry before shaking his head. "Give us a few moments, please."

The young girl nodded in response before going off to join the other locals. Once she was out of earshot, Sugawara sighed and gave Kroger a pat on the shoulder. "And you think they'll do it for this one? No matter how much good we do?"

"Somehow, someway? Yes, and I don't want to come here and try to help make amends here politically if it feels like I'm just going to go back to constant criticism. It would make this feel like a wasted effort."

"Well then, if I need to. I'll vouch for you however I can."

Sugawara smiled and watched as Marines and Japanese troops helped each other load gear up onto the back of trucks. "I'm sure our troops will too. Let the miscreants fester in their holes, men of action shouldn't have to sully themselves with the opinions of those too scared or lazy to do so. Believe me when I say, there's plenty of people back in Japan who are just as bad. A lot of them wanted us to just destroy the gate and leave it at that."

Kroger chuckled. "Yeah, damned if you do."

"And damned if you don't."

The two ambassadors shared a laugh for a few moments before the relative calm began to break. Troops suddenly began to run every which way as gear was quickly packed up and vehicle engines gunned to life. In moments Jackson and the other agents quickly ran up to them.

"Gentlemen, we need to move now. We've received word that Prince Zorzal is en route. We're to to pack up our gear and get out of dodge."

Kroger scoffed. "Nonsense! Let him come, are we too afraid to show our faces?"

"Sir these are orders coming down from generals Augustine and Hazama. We need to get you to a safe location as well as the noblemen sympathetic to our cause. Once Zorzal leaves we'll be posted back at the Jade Palace, MSG will be there waiting for us."

Sugawara sighed and gave Kroger's shoulder another pat. "No doubt general Hazama has a full plate. Our government has been very skittish with this campaign so far. It's a rough patch to navigate Kroger."

"Very well, I won't argue."

Jackson nodded before pointing to a few armored trucks the noblemen were making their way towards. "Right then, right this way gentlemen."

As the two ambassadors made their way to the waiting trucks, they passed by Aldritch and Piña. The two stood there for a few moments, just staring, before Aldritch finally smiled and gave her shoulder a squeeze. With that, he ran to the tank that had been operating out in the fields, clambering up before sliding into one of the hatches and next to an annoyed crewman.

"What do you suppose that was all about?"

"No idea."

* * *

 **1500 HOURS, THE CORRIDOR, ROAD LEADING TO ITALICA**

* * *

 **Wilkes's Album of Awesome  
**

 **Track 31: Kanye West "Niggas in Paris"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

"I fucking hate this song."

"Shut up."

"I don't fucking believe this. We're running away?"

"Yeeuup."

"We're not running away. We're just uh-"

"Shutup Little John"

"Si."

Kincaid leaned back against his seat and rolled his eyes as fussed with his comm helmet's boom mic. He smiled at the photo he had taped in his station for a second before keying back. "Yo how about' them fucking hogs though? That shit was dope as fuck. Good to know those fuckers are here huh?"

The upper half of Elton's body was outside his hatch, the tank commander looking left and right at the passing countryside. Bored out of his mind of course, nothing interesting happened as often since they cracked down on banditry.

Elton pulled his balaclava down in order to speak into his helmet's mic as he keyed back. "Yeah real fucking motivating bro. I'm just ready to go back, wash my balls and go to sleep."

"Bullshit, we gotta do a debrief, after ops, PMCS-OW!"

Kincaid's voice cut off as he felt a boot kick into the back of his helmet, throwing his head forward and into his sights. "The fuck was that for?!"

"For ruining my fucking vibe and for letting Snakey borrow your fucking Ipod. Why don't you go back to traversing too?"

"Okay, for one. Why do I have to be the one who provides the music? Aurea likes listening to it. Two, traverse for what!? There ain't shit to traverse for!"

"How the hell does she even know how to work-" Elton paused as he remembered what Aurea had done to his gunner. "Never mind."

Wilkes had been manning his new 240B, grinning from ear to ear under his balaclava as the machinegun's stock rested against his shoulder. "But we got music playing though. I came clutch with the tunes."

Elton looked away from the passing scenery and at Wilkes, raising his dark goggles over his eyes to show the glare he had on. "Are you shitting me? This ain't music."

"The fucks wrong with 'Niggas in Paris'?"

"Bro, don't start with me."

Wilkes shrugged before pointing his 240 back over the side, pausing to wave at some farmers as they passed by. Meanwhile, Elton looked over the back of his cupola and at the long line of vehicles behind their tank. It was impressive to say the least, if not a traffic accident waiting to happen. He could just barely make out Parker's tank over the top of the MRAP behind him.

If he wanted to wave, Parker wouldn't have seen it.

"Four this is One, radio check over."

Elton rolled his eyes before looking back over the front of his tank and keying forward. "One this is Four, read you Lima Charlie how me?"

"Read you same same, see anything?"

"Negative, not a damn thing."

"Tango, out."

The net stayed silent for a few minutes before Kincaid keyed back once more. "Yo Honcho? You think Piña's gonna be good? XO looked pretty bummed to be leaving her back with prince dick head."

"She'll be fine yo, you remember how she kicked XO's ass when we were ground fighting? Girl can fight."

"Yeah so can the rest of her squad." Wilkes winced as he rubbed his collarbone, he had almost broken it fighting one of them and Shino at the same time.

"Yo how much you wanna bet XO's got the hots for her?"

"Duh man, he's just acting hard. Feels like everyone's out here with someone to chat with." Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and cracked his last NOS open.

No more energy drinks till they got back to Italica and paid a trip to the makeshift PX there.

Elton's boot tapped the back of Kincaid's helmet. "Yeah well not all of us have a girlfriend who can kill us. Seriously man, what do you see in Snakey? I would've dropped her ass dead if she bit me."

Kincaid ran a gloved finger over the photo, staring at it for a few moments as he remembered the night he had first taken it.

 _Now we share the burden_

"Four-Eyes?"

Kincaid blinked for a few moments before smacking the side of his helmet.

"Yeah, sorry. Look man, I told you before. If I dropped her that would've been the end of it, Clan Formal would've all been under suspicion and probably pissed off at us too. She didn't mean to do it, it was just nature overriding. You heard what big boss maid said, she's still young and in training."

"Yeah well, you don't find it odd now how she can talk almost perfect English? Bro she literally saw everything in your mi-"

" _Dios Mio_!"

Elton was cut off at the sound of Benitez yelling, the tank suddenly coming to an abrupt halt. All behind the tank, the sound of vehicles slamming on brakes and hydraulics whining ushered forth as the rest of the convoy did the same lest they crash into one another. Once the rest of the crew recovered from being thrown around like ragdolls, Elton went to yell into his mic.

Only to stop as he saw why Benitez stopped, there was a figure in the road.

A woman.

"Four this is One, what the hell is going on?!"

Elton snapped to reality as Wilkes trained his weapon on the woman. "There's someone in the middle of the road blocking us."

"She just fucking jumped out there man. If I hadn't hit the brakes we would've hit her." Benitez answered Elton's question as he keyed out over the tank's internal net."

No sooner had Elton relayed this information back to Aldritch, every vehicle oriented its guns left or right. There was a time when bandits had used this tactic to ambush a UN convoy. It might've worked, if the UN troops weren't allowed to fire.

"Rampage keep your gun on her. If she does anything, fucking waste her." Elton grumbled as he grabbed his 870 from atop the turret and next to his cupola.

"Yeah."

As Elton took his comm helmet off and made his way down the tank, he could hear the sounds of hydraulics whining as Kincaid depressed the gun towards the woman. Once Elton was off the tank, he shouldered his shotgun and made his way forward.

Were this Afghanistan, they would've used Pen Flares to ward the individual off. Such a tactic wasn't always a good idea in Falmart however, not everyone understood what tanks were nor what a giant fizzing flare flying through the air was.

Both scared the crap out of them though.

"Ma'am?! Are you alright?! Do you need help?"

As Elton got closer, the woman removed her hood and exposed her face causing the tank commander to stop for a moment. He knew what elves were, having been around Tuka for so long. This woman was an elf, the ears were a dead giveaway.

But the grey hair and light brown skin denoted her as something else, some sort of sub species. Once her hood was dropped, so too did her knees as she looked at the claw marks on the front of the tank. She raised her hands forward and began to sob.

"Finally, after so long I've found you. My name is Yao Ha Dushi, I need your help. Y-you're the dragon fighters aren't you? The ones who warded off the flame dragon?!"

As Elton nodded, the woman began to sob further. "M-my home, my people are in danger! Please, help me!"

Elton promptly looked back at Wilkes and yelled. " **RAMPAGE, GET XO HERE NOW!** "

As the loader nodded, Elton shouldered his shotgun and took a knee.

"Ma'am, we're going to help you. We've got a score to settle with that bitch."


	25. Story Time (Filler)

**So this was a last minute sort of thing. Last year I didn't get to properly celebrate the Marine Corps Birthday, but today will be different. The four years I spent in the Marines are the proudest years of my life.  
**

 **This is a powerful month for me, especially with veterans day, the day of my enlistment and it being a year since I've been out. It's hard to believe that in 2012 I was looking at an M1A1 at Fort Benning Georgia. Becoming a Marine was the proudest day of my life, but to solidify it by serving on a machine I had been fascinated with since I was a little boy?**

 **Shit that was just icing on the cake.**

 **HWGA is special to me because it brings our world to you, shares with all of you who we are and why we serve. At the same time I try to "fix" canon and make things play out in a way I think we can all agree makes sense.**

 **Regardless, with our new president elect we're going to be moving into an interesting four years. I ask that all my fellow Americans be patient and keep their heads up. We shall persevere as we always have and always will. Let the man enter office and we'll see what happens from there.**

 **One step at a time, starting with this. Happy 241st Marine Corps birthday to my brothers. To those who have fallen, you are not forgotten. Those who are in, know that you should never be ashamed of your service. It's hard to see it now, but you'll hold onto that service when you get out. It will drive you forward, the title will always stick with you and fill you with determination to overcome any obstacles life might throw your way. To those who are out, let us continue to be an example to our fellow Americans and continue to do good things in the world.**

 **Semper Fidelis and let's keep moving forward.**

 **Also for the record, this scene happens before the Jade palace.**

* * *

 **Story Time**

 _"Back In 1775_  
 _My Marine Corps Came Alive_

 _First There Came The Color Gold_  
 _To Show The World That We Are Bold_

 _Then There Came The Color Blue_  
 _To Show The World That We Are True_

 _Then There Came the Color Red_  
 _To Show The World The Blood We have_

 _Then There Came The Color White_  
 _To Show The World That We Can Fight_

 _Then There Came The Color Green_  
 _To Show The World That We Are Mean"_

Marine Corps Running Cadence

 **0000 HOURS, FOB ITALICA, FORMAL ESTATE GARDEN**

"Jasper?"

Incoherent mumbling in response.

"Jasper? Are you awake?"

More mumbling, followed by the sound of a girl pouting. "Jasper, wake up."

Kincaid felt something flicker over his ear for a few moments before violently sitting upright and reaching for his M4 on the grass nearby.

"Showtime?!"

His eyes darted around for a few moments before slowing down, the familiar sound of a running water splashing in a fountain nearby calming him down. Kincaid sighed before setting his carbine down; he wasn't defending Italica again or fighting at Ginza.

No, he was in a calm and relaxing place.

The Formal clan was a wealthy clan and with that wealth came an estate fit for their position. The entrance leading up to the front was nothing short of breath taking, and many of the coalition troops always found themselves pausing to admire the statues and cobblestone walkways.

All the while trying to ignore the odd logistics tent or GBOSS tower.

Behind the mansion was a sight that was even more breathtaking, doubly so considering it was untouched by modern technology. Carefully tended to gardens surrounded a small fountain in a circular fashion. Surrounded by small white ornate railings and cobblestone walkways that intersected them, visitors or caretakers could easily travel around without disturbing them.

Here and there, small trees were planted to provide ample shade on sunny days. One tree in particular was the most important. Furthest from the others and with a thicker trunk, it was where Kincaid snuck off to for his nightly meetings with a certain maid.

The same one whose lap he had been resting his head on and had woken him up when he accidentally fell asleep.

Aurea. Someone who, for all intents and purposes, Kincaid wasn't supposed to be seeing. She did almost kill him, after all. Of course, this wouldn't be the first time a Marine had broken the rules. Especially not Kincaid or the Marines of Headquarters platoon.

Kincaid looked over his shoulder. "Sorry, I passed out. Work was rough today."

Aurea huffed in response, folding her arms and giving her best fake look of disappointment. For an occasion such as this she had forgone her usual maid outfit in favor of something she had acquired only recently as a late unofficial Christmas gift.

Kincaid's black tank school hoodie, a golden EGA displayed prominently on the left side of its chest and a stylized skull with a tank behind it on the back. Coupled with her white nightgown jutting out from under it and the fact the hoodie was too big for her, she looked like a mismatched pillow case.

There was also the fact she had Kincaid's glasses on, a prize she acquired during his nap.

Kincaid couldn't help but suppress a chuckle, even with the Medusa's continued fake pouting. Aurea's snakes jutted out from under her hood and shook every which way in an attempt to mimic her.

If snakes could display emotion, that is.

"You were getting ready to tell me about the Marines and then you just fell asleep mid sentence." The Medusa puffed her cheeks out and glared at Kincaid, the moon's bright glow reflecting off her serpentine eyes.

 _Time to play along._

Kincaid put on a fake frown and tried to make his way over to Aurea. "Oh come on now, don't be like that—"

Only to be stopped mid way by snakes shaking in front of him.

"Nope! You're mean!"

 _Geez for someone who claims to be as old as me, you act like a real child. Then again, so do I._

"I'm mean, huh?"

Aurea nodded, her snakes mimicking the gesture. "Yes, this is our special time and you fell asleep. Such rudeness cannot go unanswered."

Kincaid blew some air between his closed lips and rolled his eyes. "Oh okay, so I'm mean." He then held his hand up and began to count down on his fingers. "My hoodie, my glasses, then there was the time I showed you Star Wars, gonna need my iPod back."

As Kincaid continued to count on his fingers, Aurea's expression began to change. Sarcasm was still something new to her, even if she knew more about Earth traditions than most. The bite did have some upsides.

"Then there's all the times I snuck out to see you. Maybe I should go—"

"No! It was merely a jest! Please do not be angry with me." Aurea's snakes flailed in distress as they reached out with her arms towards Kincaid. "Please do not be angry, I know you work tirelessly."

 _Gotcha._

Kincaid chuckled before making his way over and sitting next to the distraught girl. As he put an arm around her small form, he braced as he felt scales cover his head and neck. He still wasn't sure if Aurea had control over the snakes or if they each had a mind of their own. They did bite him before, and it was not pleasant.

Regardless, the snakes had a habit of getting into everything they could whenever he was near her and Kincaid still couldn't help but be on his guard whenever their snouts lingered on his skin for too long.

"I'm just playin' with you." Kincaid chuckled and tucked a finger under Aurea's chin, turning her head to face him. He smiled as he looked into her eyes, the Medusa mimicking the expression in kind. "You know you mean the world to me."

Aurea giggled. "Which world?"

"Both this one and mine. I wouldn't trade meeting you for anything."

 _Even if you did almost kill me and go through most of my memories as a result. Now we're in love._ _Hell of a goddamn Christmas gift and a way to kick off the New Year._

Kincaid drew Aurea's face close to his and placed a small kiss on her lips, his hand gliding over and rubbing one of her pointed ears for a few seconds before he drew back.

"I do enjoy when you do that, even if the mustache tickles me so." One of the snakes drew up and pressed its snout against Kincaid's facial hair before Aurea giggled and nestled her head under his chin. Kincaid sighed, the cold smooth scales felt comforting against his freshly shaved chin.

"Yeah well, I aim to please. But the mustache is staying, not you or the gods themselves are getting rid of it."

"Except when your superiors tell you to." Aurea promptly squeaked as she felt a finger jab her hip.

"Really funny, I don't recall teaching you how to be a smartass. Or did you learn that from mind sucking me?" Kincaid braced before a series of snouts began to peck his chin rapidly. He laughed for a bit before waving them off. "Okay okay, I yield."

Aurea giggled before going back to relaxing. "So?"

"So?"

"Are you going to tell me about the Marines?"

"I thought I already gave you that history lesson."

"Yes, but I enjoy hearing it. It's up there with being one of my favorite stories."

"Jesus, the hell is this some sort of bed time story? Alright." Kincaid made himself comfortable before looking up at the moon.

"So a long long time ago. Long before you or I were ever born, my country was beginning to fight for its independence."

Kincaid paused before raising an eyebrow. "Well, it was a colony back then. Anyways, a group of guys got together and said. 'You know what? We need some hardcore ass kickers to help protect our boats out in the waters. The British are pretty damn good out there so we gotta be too.' So they got this guy named Samuel Nicholas and they were like. 'Look, we need some tough guys. They gotta be good to fight on ship and shore. Go raise two battalions of them."

"Samuel Nicholas was the first Commandant, right?"

 _Someone remembers her classes_

Kincaid chuckled. "He sure was. Now Samuel Nicholas knew that if he was gonna get some hardcore ass kickers, he was going to need to go to the one place hardcore ass kickers hung out. A bar."

"Tun Tavern!"

"Damn right, these guys were the first Marines. But at the time, they were known as the continental Marines because we weren't a country yet. All the same, these guys went out there and they were pretty damn good with their boom boom sticks."

Kincaid felt a snout jab at his forehead, Aurea scoffing in response. "I know they're called guns Jasper."

"Oh right, I forgot you know know everything. You wanna tell the story or…?"

Another snout jab.

"Alright, alright. So they did pretty good and eventually against all odds we won our independence. The continental Marines would eventually disband a while later cause the big people in charge thought we didn't need them anymore. But of course, they were wrong and wound up bringing 'em back for another war, but by then, we became our own branch. Though, we're still considered a department of the Navy."

 _The men's department, rah?_

"And the Navy are all your sea fighters right? They have all the big boats?"

"Sure are. They're our closest brothers out of all the branches. You know a lot of the guys who dress like us are actually from the Navy? They help take care of us if we get hurt."

"And us too! Carter is very nice. He helped patch up some of our clan's wounded guards."

"Absolutely. Our Corpsmen are an integral part of our team. They go where we go."

Aurea sighed. "I've never seen a boat or the ocean. They must be amazing, I do hope to see them one day."

Kincaid rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Yeah well, our boats are bit different from anything you might see here, and a hell of a lot more different than what we had back then. But yeah, the ocean is beautiful."

"Didn't you say Japan was an island surrounded by it?" Aurea nestled her head closer. "How lucky they must be."

"I dunno about that. I've lived on Islands before. It gets kinda cramped sometimes. Anyways back to the story. Now, where was I?"

"You said the Marines had came back."

Kincaid snapped his fingers. "Ah yeah, you're right. Anyways, so another war kicked off. Although it was..." He paused to rub the back of his head. "Well, you know it was a sort of war. Ah, crap, you know I suck at the history between the fun parts."

"I know! Next comes Tripoli! That's where part of your song came from." Aurea giggled. "Imagine how embarrassed you would be if your superiors knew a Medusa knew more about your history than you. Perhaps I'm more fit to be a Marine!"

Aurea squeaked as she felt another finger poke at her side, her snakes flailing in surprise.

"You wouldn't last a day on the tank and you know it. You freaked right the hell out when we had snuck you and Mamina on for a joyride."

"Did not."

"You almost choked me."

 _Meanwhile Mamina was hoopin and hollerin and almost got us right the fuck in trouble._

"Fine, but continue! The fun stuff is coming."

Kincaid shook his head and sighed. "I don't know if fun is the best way to describe a lot of what's coming next. My country went through a lot of hoops to get where it is now, and we Marines have been there through all of it. The Mexican American War, the Civil War. You know there was a time Marines fought each other? Brother against brother? The Civil War was terrible and many of my people died."

"I'm sure it was terrible. There have been many civil wars in the Empire's life time too."

 _Yeah, well the Empire can suck a fat dick._

Kincaid blew some air out, he was craving a cigarette. "It was, Aurea. My country was divided. But we overcame and eventually we reunited and pushed forward. That's what Americans do; that's what Marines do."

"So I have seen."

"Yeah, anyways. Marines continued to make a name for themselves for years after that, men like Dan Daley and Smedley Butler. These are Marines whose names are forever honored in our history and whose actions form the basis for who we are today. It wasn't until much later my country found itself taking part in one of the biggest wars of that time. A terrible war that engulfed the entire world. World War One. It was there we earned our nickname and in a place far from home."

"Devil Dogs, during the Battle of Bell-la Wood."

Kincaid took his free hand and ran it down the back of Aurea's head a few times, twirling a few snakes in between his fingers every so often. "That's my girl! You're absolutely right! Eventually World War One ended and many countries in the world had to rebuild. We were fortunate in that we lost a great many men, but the war itself took place far away from us. Something that would play a big role years later."

Aurea looked up at Kincaid as he continued to play with her snakes absent mindedly. "World War Two, that was when you fought Japan."

"Yeah, that's something a lot of the Japanese troops aren't too fond of talking about. Something many in their country want to forget, but it was because of that that we are where we are today. While our Army helped our allies in Europe, we Marines had to go fight the Japanese with our Navy brothers. The Army was there too, but we took the brunt of the fighting."

"So in a way, you share a history in particular with the Japanese."

"Yeah, we made a name for ourselves in many bloody battles, Aurea. A lot of young men fought and died on islands, both ours and the Japanese. Once again though, against all odds we persevered and emerged victorious. We also helped Japan rebuild, and from the ashes of that war, an alliance grew. A lot of famous Marines made their name in World War Two as well, such as John Basilone and Chesty Puller."

Aurea's eyes grew wide. "Chesty Puller is the most famous of them all."

 _You'd love Mad Dog Mattis, this campaign is due for some of that hard charger._

Kincaid chuckled. "Yeah, we'd like to think so. He was a real Marine's Marine, Aurea. A tough sonavabitch, just like our brotherhood. He would even go on to fight in another war known as the Korean War. You know we helped save a country from being taken over there? Another close ally of ours."

Aurea puffed her cheeks up. "We're surrounded on all sides! That simplifies our problem! Nobody beats the Marines!"

"You're damn right! We always make sure to give more than we get. If we lose a lot of our own, we make sure the enemy loses even more. That's how we fight."

"Like Devil Dogs!"

Kincaid's eyes stared at the moon for a few seconds. "Yeah, like devil dogs."

"Jasper?"

"Sorry, I was just spacing out."

Aurea buried her head back under Kincaid's chin, snuggling back into his neck. "I don't like this next part."

"Yeah, me neither. After Korea, well. You know, a lot of strange wars and conflicts began to spring up."

"Can we skip Vietnam? I know it pains you to talk of it." Aurea snuggled closer. Let's talk about the Gulf War, that's where your father fought and when _**my**_ Marine was born."

Kincaid nodded. "Yeah, the Gulf War. That was my father's war, a very quick one but his all the same. A desert country known as Iraq was being led by an asshole named Saddam. He decided he was going to just go invade a neighboring country, because hey why not? He's got the power right? Of course he hadn't counted on a Coalition kicking his ass seven different kinds of crazy. My dad was a combat engineer, he was part of Task Force Ripper."

"Combat engineer?"

"Yeah he made things blow up, real damn good at his job too."

Kincaid began to puff his chest out with pride, the Gulf War was one of his favorite periods of military history. "You know the Abrams fought in that war too, oh you should see the photos of em Aurea. Hundreds of em zipping across the desert and popping enemy tanks like they were made of paper. A lot of people shit their pants after that performance."

Aurea was used to see four tanks, the idea of more than that fighting in one place was simply baffling to her.

"Didn't you say some people like to think it was an unfair war? That they think you aren't owed that victory because of how easy it was?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes. "Yeah well you know, there's a lot of _**buttsore**_ assholes who love to hate. If you can't stand the heat stay out of the kitchen. Everyone's always scraping for bread crumbs. Point is we kicked some serious ass and for good reasons."

Kincaid paused. "Those were figures of speech, not literal."

Aurea giggled. "I figured as much, you always have strange manners of speaking." She then tightened her hold on Kincaid. "But this was around the time you were born. The legendary dragon fighter was just a little baby, oh how cute you must've been."

"I dunno, I was kinda chunky. Don't ever let my mom show you the baby photos. Anyways, yeah, that was around when I was born. Once I got old enough to understand what my dad was, I wanted to be just like him."

 _But you know all this, you saw my memories. Saw me following him. That was the only thing that saved me. I overloaded you with all the memories of a world you had never been to and couldn't understand. I gave you a taste of what it means to be me. What it means to be us.  
_

"And you did Jasper. I'm sure your father must be proud of you now."

Kincaid began to stare off into the distance as his mind raced back. All the years of putting on oversized uniforms, long nights crying when his father went on a MEU or had to go off somewhere to train. His mind wandered to the years he spent living abroad around his father's Marines at the embassies, how after many years the inevitable divorce happened.

Then came the pain of moving back to Maryland as a broken family. Him, Janice, and Jackson. The three of them learning how to live together and try to pull things around. Kincaid grew older, his view on a few things changed.

He never doubted his decision to enlist and his mind suddenly raced back to graduation day at Parris Island. The day he stood in front of his father as not only his son, but a fellow Marine.

The proudest day in his life second only to graduating tank school.

Then there was Afghanistan, his war. Coming back home alive, but not completely unscathed.

"Yeah...yeah, I know he is."

"Jasper?"

"Yeah?"

"You're crying."

Kincaid felt a snout snake up his cheek and wipe away at a small tear that had formed. He sighed and shook his head.

"Oh, sorry, I get real sentimental about this sort of thing. It's uh, just been a really long road for me. Really, really long. But it's been worth it. Every last bit of it."

"It brought you to me though."

"Yeah it did. Another thing I'm thankful for. You know all of this is gonna be added to our history, too?" Kincaid reached out with his hand and gestured. "No doubt about it, Aurea. This campaign is gonna be added to Marine Corps history. Another achievement of ours."

"Will there be a part that tells of the Marine who brought hope to a young Medusa? Helped her experience love for the first time?"

Kincaid blew some air out of his lips, he still had to get used to her praise. "Well, I dunno about that, I'll add that to my own personal history. How's that?"

"That sounds perfect." Kincaid felt another snout begin lazily circling against his neck for a few moments. "The Medusa and the Marine from far away, perhaps that should be a story of its own."

"Maybe, maybe." Kincaid went back to gently stroking Aurea's head for a few moments, closing his eyes and enjoying the cool night's breeze.

"To be a part of all of that. That's a wonderful heritage, Jasper. It makes me proud to know I'm in love with someone from an order as noble as yours."

"Yeah, being a Marine." Kincaid opened his eyes and stared at the moon. "It's something I'd never trade for anything, Aurea. Being a tanker, working with the guys. They're like another family to me and I love each and every one of them. I like the feeling of waking up and knowing I'm part of something greater, in service to my nation."

 _And I would've been out now. But that's okay._

He paused and kissed the top of Aurea's head. "And sometimes others too, others like you."

"Didn't you say you would've been out by now? Back home?"

"Yeah, I would've. The gate opening kinda put the squash on that."

Aurea sighed. "I'm sorry my world has been such a nuisance to you."

"Shush" Kincaid raised Aurea's head up by her chin and kissed her forehead. "If I have to stay in a bit longer and do something worth doing? Then I'll keep on serving. Besides, my brothers still need me and we have a dragon we still gotta kill."

"That you do." Aurea giggled before planting a small kiss on Kincaid's lips and returning back to her original position with a sigh of content. "That you do."

As the pair went back to relaxing, Aurea yawned. "How much longer do you have before you have to go back to your area?"

Kincaid glanced at his watch. "I got about fifteen minutes."

"Time flies by too quick."

"Yeah, yeah it does. I know that all too well."

"Can you play the song?

Kincaid chuckled. "Why? It's a bit too motivated for me."

"Well I like it, you know I listen to it once a day."

"Geez you're worse than some of our boots." Kincaid reached into his cargo pocket and pulled his phone out, scrolling through a playlist or two before finding the song.

 _I can't really say shit, I still have the ringtone on my phone for some reason. God I was such a boot._

* * *

 **Motard Album of Awesome  
**

 **Track 31: Marine Corps Hymn**

 _ **Rah?**_

* * *

As the song kicked in, Kincaid sat there and held Aurea close. "You know, our birthday was a while back?"

"Was it? How old is your order now?"

Kincaid paused for a moment and thought hard. "I wanna say...two hundred and forty years now. Two hundred and forty years of service to our nation, with many more to come."

"That's almost as long as some Elves live for."

"No kidding." Kincaid smiled as he thought back to all the birthdays he had celebrated. "Every year on the tenth of November, Marines of past and present get together. Sometimes we throw big celebrations and balls-"

"Balls?"

"Yep, Marines bring their families and we all come together to celebrate our brotherhood. Sometimes there's dancing-"

 _Drunken Marines playing with NCO swords, bar fights and general grab assery._

Aurea sighed. "I do wish I could go to such a thing. I've never even been someone's dance partner before or even been able to enjoy myself in such a way. Our old master used to throw such festivities, but I could only serve."

She paused and looked up at Kincaid a look of hope in her eyes. "Someday I want to go to a ball, I want to celebrate with you."

"Yeah, that'd be nice huh? I'd love that more than anything else." Kincaid gave his best smile.

"Can we go someday?" Aurea's eyes widened. "Oh, perhaps I can wear a dress! And you can wear your ceremonial uniform like the Fo-Toes you showed me! Oh Jasper it would be perfect!"

"I-"

 _Can't make a promise knowing I may not be able to keep it._

"When this war ends and it's time for me to go..."

Aurea's face twisted into a look of sadness. "But how long will that be? Perhaps I can leave with you when the time comes?"

Kincaid gently stroked the side of her face and shushed her. "Hey hey, one step at a time. Right now this is our moment, a happy moment." He paused and tucked her head back under his chin. "One step at a time okay? One step at a time."

"You are right. I apologize for my worrying."

"Don't be, it's alright."

Things went back to being silent for a few moments, the song continued to play before Kincaid lightened the mood.

"Say, wanna see my old bootcamp photos again? There's still time for that."

"Oh yes! Very much so! I do enjoy seeing how silly you looked." Aurea giggled. "My Marine came a long way before he became a tank-er."

"Yeah he did."

 _We all did and now here we are fighting in another world. Every clime and place huh?_

As the pair continued to look through the album on Kincaid's phone, Kincaid stopped as his gaze rested on one image.

It was his old deployment photo.

Kincaid stood there on the front slope of his tank with Raymond Wilkes and their old tank commander. The four each had a shit eating grin on as they posed in some sort of ridiculous pose, trying their best to ignore the Afghan heat.

One of those men would die that day, but Aurea already knew that.

She saw the memory.

"Afghanistan...you didn't mention that or Iraq."

Kincaid snapped out of his trance at the sound of Aurea's voice and sighed. "I'd rather not. Despite what we've done over there, the progress we made and the fact that we actually accomplished our goals. People don't want to see it that way."

"I know, you always get angry whenever you talk about-"

"Because people think they know how it was over there. Fucking pussies who were too god damn chicken shit to enlist and think they have the right to judge men of action while they fucking sit back and comment on the fucking internet. You weren't fucking there, you don't know us. Young men died over there and you think because some fucking leftist blogger said we gun down innocents it must be true? Oh of course! Afghan is where Empires go to fucking die right?"

"Jasper?-"

"We didn't die for shit we stomped those mother fuckers good and got their fucking boy. The great illusive Osama! Didn't elude that casket huh buddy?! But nooo the fucking Arabs don't want to work with us to try and pull them out of the bullshit. People want us to go fucking fight terrorists, so we do and suddenly they start criticizing us. We didn't lost there, the fucking people did. We opened the doors and they fucking closed them. But that's our fault right? Maybe some of these internet arm chair generals can go lead the next campaign surely they know better? I wonder if they're fucking judging this war too. 'Oh America can't fight anyone at their level!' Even though last I checked all the other big powers haven't been either-"

"Jasper!"

Kincaid stopped, his breathing heavy from having ranted so much. He had gone off on another tangent, a side effect of talking about his war and what his generation of troops had to deal with.

"Sorry I-"

"It's okay my love. I know how you get, but look at me." Aurea brought her face up to his, her eyes boring into his own. "Do not let such critics judge you, do not let their words fall upon your ears. You and all your brothers are here doing amazing things, you've changed my world forever."

The pair shared a kiss for a brief moment. "And for that no words can ever express how thankful I am. The gods opened the gate, and brought you through. Brought _**you**_ to **_me_**."

"Yeah, yeah you're right. I shouldn't let that crap get to me." Kincaid nodded and tucked Aurea's head back under his chin.

"I can be wise too you know."

"Of cours-"

Suddenly Kincaid's alarm went off on his watch, a series of small beeps chirping in rapid order. He groaned before depressing a series of buttons on it.

"Well, it's that time again."

Aurea sighed. "Indeed it is."

As the pair got up, Kincaid fetched his M4 and beanie off the grass before playfully plucking his glasses off Aurea's face. Once he was adjusted and ready to head back, he brought Aurea close and embraced her for a few moments.

"It was good to see you tonight."

"As always dearest."

As the pair drew back they shared one last kiss before Kincaid slung his M4 and turned to head back. He made it halfway out of the garden before Aurea called to him.

"Jasper?"'

"Yeah?"

"Next time can you teach me about the Ay-brams?"

"What the other love in my life? Sure why not." With that he went to continue on his way before stopping once more, slowly looking over his shoulder."Aurea?"

"Yes?"

"Next time we meet up, we need to talk about some things. Like the visions-"

"Yes, I understand."

Silence.

"Are they getting any better?"

Aurea sighed. "I cannot tell, there's no pattern to them. Some days I have them, some days I do not."

"Right...look I'm sorr-"

"Do not be, it is my fault for biting in the first place. For my lack of self control and looking into places I shouldn't have."

Kincaid chuckled. "We're just peas and carrots aren't we?"

Aurea cocked her head to the side, her snakes doing the same. "Peas...and carrots?"

Kincaid turned around and smiled. "It's a joke, I forgot I still gotta teach you those." He then shook his head. "Anyways, I gotta go for real now. Night sweetheart."

"Goodnight."

As Kincaid made his way out of the garden and down one of the large cobblestone paths leading from the mansion he thought to himself for a few moments.

That entire conversation had been in fluent English, that hadn't always been the case with their prior ones.

* * *

 **For those who aren't aware, Medusas can rip the memories out of people with a bite. This was explained briefly in the manga. Regarding the two hundred and forty years, by this timeline it's just the beginning of 2016.  
**


	26. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

**Man, I don't know how ya'll put up with my slow ass. This time I have a good excuse, no really!**

 **My cantankerous veteran ass was off travelling for the holidays after I got done with finals (who's asses got kicked let me tell you).**

 **"But Faust, where did you go?"**

 **Jakarta Indonesia and Albany Australia my dear readers, and lemme tell you...I did some fucking adventurous ass shit. Fucking fun times all around and a great way to end the old year and kick off the new one. Which allow me to go ahead and say I hope you all had holidays just as well spent.**

 **A whole year now I've been out of the Corps and doing my "normal" thing, against all doubt I've been doing good. So let me tell any of my fellow vets or those wondering what life is after the service. You CAN succeed and you CAN find solace, use that grit you gained in the service and go out there and get what you deserve.**

 **I try not to fill this space up with too much, but ya'll been faithful followers and have been here since the beginning too so it makes sense to let a little out and let ya'll know what the good gouge is.**

 **To my guests who review, your words do NOT fall on deaf ears believe me it's just that trying to address you all personally like I address actual users is difficult. Ya'll are probably the biggest contributors towards me going back and trimming the fat so to speak. Why do i do this? So future readers get the best experience I can give, one without plot holes and logic all around.**

 **Except for the Storks...we don't talk about them *cough*. Yeah, I plan on completely unfucking that nightmare.**

 **So before I go into this chapter let me brush everyone up on the latest in changes I've made (nothing TOO extreme no worries).**

 **-Dirrel is now Obama, relax I didn't fuck him up lol. This story is supposed to be a fix/what if scenario. What better way to show the gate's impact than by keeping things current?**

 **-The Japanese Prime Minister is Shinzo Abe, relax this nigga don't even talk much so I didn't fuck him up either.**

 **-The elections are discussed in small quantities (boy are they in for a fucking shocker later on).**

 **-Because I didn't release an Xmas/New Years chapter, the previous two chapters discuss in passing what happened during those holidays back at Alnus. Think you guys will like it.**

 **-Various small fixes (such as how the Marines got training during their three months of workups on how to operate Stingers etc. Harriers dropping bombs in a city? Ah no, that was stupid.)**

 **-The Kurokawa lead up has some fucking basis to it, it doesn't feel forced anymore.**

 **-Befitting the fact that Van Hauser has always been leading a platoon, he's been retconned to a lieutenant. I wasn't infantry and to be but totally honest that shit is alien speak to me. Regardless, doesn't impact the story but it helps my logic train chug on. He's also been changed to coming from a unit fit to have come from Okinawa. Again, doesn't impact plot but helps my logic train**

 **-There's also some familiar faces operating in Falmart now, turns out I dropped the ball over who's primarily in charge of protecting the ambassador. Really shameful, I should've known better. Shit's gonna get interesting with that.**

 **-Grammar, less flowery talking. Fucking Kincaid sounded like a fucking preacher in a few spots, a preacher he is NOT.**

 **Aand that should be it, so let's continue this adventure shall we?**

* * *

 **Chapter 24: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back**

 _"The bended knee is not a tradition of our corps."_

General Alexander A. Vandergrift, USMC  
to the Senate Naval Affairs Committee, 5 May 1946

 **1600 HOURS JADE PALACE, FALMART, SPECIAL REGION**

Once the last of the armored trucks had disappeared, Piña sighed as she made her way back to the festivities. Or rather, what was left of them. Many of the guests had left and for good reason. If any evidence of them having discussions with an enemy of the empire had gotten out, they'd all be jailed or worse: killed.

Man, woman, and child alike.

All Piña knew was that once Zorzal was gone, she'd be able to resume talks with Kroger and Sugawara inside the Jade Palace. However long that would take, Zorzal enjoyed listening to himself talk as well as flaunt his authority.

He also enjoyed being absolutely ruthless.

 _James… watch over me._

"Your highness?"

Piña snapped out of her daze at the sound of Sherry's voice. The young royal picked her dress up slightly as she hurried to keep in step with Piña, looking up at her with a look of concern. "You seem unwell."

"That would be an understatement, Sherry." Piña sighed as her gaze remained fixed on the hill she knew her brother would emerge over. "I am anything but thrilled to hear my 'brother' is on his way here." Her voice had been laced with venom calling that man her brother. They weren't even completely blood related, she was the daughter of a concubine.

Something he made sure to remind her of every chance he got.

"Crown Prince Zorzal. I've never met him, but my father has during his dealings with the Senate." Sherry glanced over at her parents, the two royals conversing with some maids. She paused, looking down at the ground in shame.

"You may speak freely. Your father had nothing positive to say of him, did he?" Piña raised an eyebrow.

"No… he did not."

"Then you know the sort of risks your family faces by being here, what we all face by being here. For all intents and purposes, each and every one of us are potential enemies of the Empire now."

Piña grimaced, it was thought she didn't need to remind herself of.

"Respectfully, your highness it is a risk my family and I are willing to take." By now, the pair had made their way to the gazebo Piña and Aldritch had been occupying earlier the princess raising an eyebrow all the while.

"Is that so?"

"Quite. Your highness, my family has served the people of the Empire for a long time now and have made a name for ourselves in doing so. You know this. Otherwise, you and I would not be having this conversation."

The young girl made her way to one of the railings looking out at the water and landscape beyond.

"The Emperor may pass decrees, but ultimately it is the Senate who pushes them forward. The Senate serves the people, not the emperor. If working with this 'coalition' helps preserve the empire and spare our people from a terrible fate? Then isn't that a risk we should all be willing to take?"

There was a time when Piña believed in her father, a time where her loyalty was unwavering. Had she been hearing Sherry's words prior to the gate opening, she might have even labeled her a traitor. But these were trying times and deep down she knew Sherry was right. There was indeed an end coming and at that end Piña knew very well her father wouldn't be on the throne.

The question was, who would? And what would this mean for her people? The simple thought of it all was enough to make her head spin.

 _One step at a time, just like James said._

Piña couldn't help but smile. "You're awfully perceptive for your age, that wit will be a valuable asset when you become of age."

Sherry promptly turned around with a grin on her face, she was still a child after all. "I often listen in on my parents as they practice speeches between each other. They also take time out of their days to teach me, my father says a lady of my position needs to learn such skills in order to be suitable for marriage."

She giggled. "Perhaps mister Sugawara will find me suitable."

"Perhaps, when you are of age." Piña rolled her eyes. "I have spent a great deal of time around both him and many of the other people from his world, and they have laws and traditions far different from ours."

Sherry gave a smug look. "Oh? Time well spent with that one warrior in question, no doubt."

"And how does that concern you? Our relationship is one of two leaders with mutual understanding, we both have people to serve." Piña rolled her eyes before shaking her head. "Besides, our positions would never allow it to be anything more."

 _You're far too clever for your own good, young Sherry._

Sherry raised an eyebrow. "If you say so. I may be young, but I'm not naive. You look at him the same way any woman admires a man, that is a timeless thing—"

Piña folded her arms under her chest. "This is coming from a girl not of age with visions of grandeur involving a man far above her. Even if I did admire James, at least I can do it in such a way that does not immediately give off my feelings."

 _But I can be just as clever._

Sherry stood there silently and for just a moment Piña swore she could see a frown forming on her face.

"You're smart, but you still have growing to do, miss Tyueli."

Before Sherry could respond, the sounds of hooves and horses neighing began to echo throughout the area.

Zorzal and his entourage had arrived. Piña promptly shot Sherry a concerned look, her fists slowly beginning to clench.

"It would be wise to head back to your parents."

Sherry nodded in agreement before cocking her head to the side. "And what will you do?"

"The only thing I can do, deal with him and hope he leaves as quickly as he arrived."

 _A task easier said than done..._

 **XXXXXXX**

When the call to withdraw all the coalition's forces came out over the net, not everyone was granted the luxury of being able to leave. One of the drones from earlier still lingered in the skies above, its operators being a squad of understandably irate reconnaissance Marines hiding within nearby dense vegetation. They were irate for a number of reasons, chief of which being that they had to stay back in the first place. A position not made any better considering they had been there hours before everyone else and long before the sun had even risen.

The Marines had parked their Humvee inside the vegetation and had sent up one of their short range UAVs on an overwatch pattern, the drone's operator monitoring a screen from the back of the vehicle. Meanwhile, their sniper team had set up a short distance away from the rest of the troops, giving themselves plenty of room to scope out the entire area. Everything up till now had been a relatively boring affair, Zorzal's arrival being a saving grace from the mundane task of playing guardian angel.

A temporary saving grace, as they'd soon find out.

"You got 'em?"

"Yes sir. Five including Zorzal."

"Good."

Some silence.

"So, are we not getting this guy?"

"Not until we get the word."

A pair of groans.

"You're fucking shitting me. Sir, respectfully, why the hell not?"

"Japs said so. Least, that's the word I got."

"Since when did we start answering to them? Jesus fucking christ, let's just kill his buddies and capture him. Fucking simple shit."

"Because we're supposed to kill em with kindness. Word on the street is that Japan doesn't want us having to agitate these guys anymore than we have to. Princess Peach and the round table gang are supposed to be the ones who make em see reason. We gotta be the bigger man, boys."

"Oh, for fucks sake."

One of the Marines, a lieutenant, sighed before leaving his sniper team and making his way back to the bush covered Humvee. He then promptly opened its driver's side door and switched a few channels on its dash mounted radio.

"CP, this is Bandit. Be advised, we have positive ID on crown prince Zorzal. How do you want us to proceed?"

In seconds, a woman's voice promptly responded. "Bandit. This is CP. Solid on your last, wait one."

As the lieutenant waited for Italica's CP to relay the message, one of his NCO's, a sergeant, chuckled from the passenger's seat. "Ooh, sultry."

"Seriously? We've been around females of various makes models and god knows what else and you're excited over one of our own? You stand a better chance of getting lucky with the locals and honestly why would you even bother in the first place?" The lieutenant paused before pointing at the sergeant with an accusatory look. "That's not me giving you any ideas."

The sergeant had a shit eating grin. "No sir, no it's not. Totally not like it hasn't already happened with anyone else."

A pair of lance corporals had been nearby providing rear security, one of them promptly nudging the other and making a pumping motion with his non firing hand in response to this statement.

The lieutenant sighed before rubbing his sleep deprived eyes. "I need a fucking coffee when we get ba—"

"Bandit, this is CP."

The officer snagged one the radio's handsets. "Send it for Bandit."

"You are to continue monitoring and report any developments."

The lieutenant facepalmed, a couple of quiet curses coming from various marines nearby.

"Roger that… Bandit out."

The lieutenant threw the handset at the dashboard. "Fucking politics."

 **XXXXXXX**

"Brother, this is an unexpected surprise. What brings you to us today?"

Piña made her way towards Zorzal and his entourage as they began to dismount their horses, the men accompanying him casting her suspicious looks. At a glance one would think they were a bodyguard drawn from the most loyal and capable of troops. They certainly stood in stark contrast to Zorzal in that unlike their leader, they lacked any of the royal garb or plate. In truth, they were nothing more than a mixture of some of Zorzal's closest friends and hired hands he had accumulated over time. As intimidating as they looked, they nowhere near as skilled as the Imperial Royal Guard. They were, like their leader, nothing more than bullies. A buffer to prevent him from being overwhelmed.

Zorzal had never been a fair fighter after all.

"Unexpected, is it? You know I do enjoy making an entrance." The young prince gave his trademark smirk before slowly looking over what remained of the festivities, his voice slowly beginning to trail off as his smirk twisted into an abject look of displeasure.

"I might have been here sooner had I known there was a gathering in the first place, it would appear I have missed the best of it."

Piña could feel a knot grow in her stomach. Zorzal may not have been a fair fighter, but there was a reason for that. He was arrogant, cocksure, and always privy to anything going on. His lack of honor meant he was quick to exploit a weakness no matter how dirty it was and as a result he had developed a twisted form of cunning all of his own. Someone had spoken to him about what was going on, all he needed to do now was piece everything together.

His suspicions about anything and everything were also a trademark characteristic of his.

Piña steeled her resolve, she would need every ounce of tact and cunning to get through this. "It wasn't much to begin with, just a few friends of mine. Surely the fancies of small talk between women is below you—"

"No feast or banquet involving members of the royal family is above or below me." Zorzal paused before staring directly into Piña's eyes. "Even if those members come from less than appealing stock."

"I appreciate the consideration, _**brother.**_ " Piña was sure to lace the word brother with just enough spite in it.

Zorzal shrugged before smiling. "I do what I can, but regardless. Surely you've saved enough for your dear brother and his comrades? The trip here was not a quick one by any means." He paused before glancing at his entourage. "Right, men?"

A series of chuckles and nods of approval ushered in response as Piña tried her best to keep up her facade of tolerance.

"But of course..."

Zorzal promptly snapped his fingers before adjusting the elaborate scarlet red pelt around the shoulders of his red, golden trimmed armor. "Well, you heard her men. Make yourself at home with whatever and whoever. We'll be here for a while."

Without missing a beat, Zorzal's entourage promptly scattered about the area and made themselves a nuisance. Now alone, Zorzal returned his attention to his clearly annoyed sister.

"Now then, we have much to discuss sister. It's felt like ages since we've had a proper talk."

As the pair began to walk through throughout the area, Piña raised an eyebrow. "Has it? With all the going ons from the war, I've hardly had time to think about it. Surely, you have been just as busy as I."

Zorzal snatched a small glass of wine from a nearby maid's tray before taking a sip and sighing. "Well, a prince does what he must. Having to organize our soldiers' rank and file as well as weed out insurrection from our very capital is a tiring process. These are indeed trying times, are they not?"

Piña's eyes searched around the area for a moment ensuring there were no signs of the previous otherworldly occupants or the more obvious of sympathizers.

"Of that, we can agree on." She paused remembering Zorzal's prior words. "Insurrection?"

"Indeed. There is good word and signs that our foe has agents placed in Sadera as well as sympathizers aiding their movements." Zorzal's face began to twist into the scowl he often had whenever he didn't get his way. Piña hadn't known the Coalition had forces already inside the capital's very streets, indeed there were a great many things they still hadn't told her.

What she did know was that the Empire clearly hadn't any more success finding or fighting them as it did with the forces near Italica or elsewhere. Zorzal's expression was a dead giveaway. Better to play along all the same.

"And have we had any luck with them?"

Zorzal finished his wine and returned it to another maid's tray before putting on his best arrogant smile. "We are making progress. This new foe is tenacious and powerful, but the Empire will endure and succeed as it always has."

Clearly a lie brother. We've already lost, it's just a matter of how much more we have to give away before you, father, or anyone else acknowledge this.

Piña nodded in agreement. "Indeed, we shall."

The pair stopped for a moment as Zorzal adjusted the elaborate hilt for his sword, once he was done he folded his arms as they continued once more."But back to catching up, father has certainly placed much on you and your Rose Order's shoulders during this war. Sending you off to Alnus and your defense of Italica? I'm surprised, not bad for a bunch of pretend soldiers following an equally inexperienced leader."

Piña restrained herself from clenching her fists, Zorzal was doing his best to get her to snap. It wouldn't work though, she had been through far more than her brother could ever know and had learned much through all of it.

She had Aldritch to thank for that.

Piña nodded. "It was a trial by fire we gladly accepted, and father's trust has been rewarded. Grey has done well to train my warriors as well as myself, neither you nor our people will find us wanting." She watched as a pair of her knights kept watch on Zorzal's men, if worse came to worse those two alone could easily dispatch them.

"So it would seem." Zorzal chuckled. "You know there were many including myself who had assumed you were dead, it was a long time before you returned to us. You were originally tasked to go to Alnus after all, our enemy's bastion." He then raised an eyebrow. "Then of course there's Italica to consider, which is now under their control as well. Which of course begs the question, just how did you survive and what have you been up to?"

The princess didn't even have time to drum a response before Zorzal began to pace back and forth. "You know dear sister, there are those who believe you've been in direct contact with the enemy. Wilder claims say you've even walked into their bastions, rode around in their strange methods of transportation and even fought alongside them against local banditry."

Piña immediately retorted. "And you would believe these claims? People who have long spoken out against me for my perceived weaknesses?"

"Well there's no evidence to go against them, our top scouts and truth seekers have been disappearing left and right—"

Piña stomped her foot. "Father believes me. Diabo believes me."

"Diabo simply doesn't care. He's too busy chasing women and trying to undermine my claims to the throne, truly an honorable brother. As for father, he's getting old and indecisive. He cowers in the palace and cares not for action anymore, he believes all we need to do is hold the capital. I've tried to convince many times him to allow me even so much as to summon the Oprichnina-"

"The Oprichnina? Is that necessary?" Piña eyed her brother in disbelief. "Our most ruthless of intelligence gatherers, why? So they can round up everyone and kill them on the slightest of infractions?"

 _They would die just the same as anyone else. In fact I'd wager they'd give intelligence instead of gather it once the coalition got their hands on them._

"Yes I would, at least I'm willing to take action and do what's necessary to save our rule. The Empire kowtows to nobody. I kowtow to nobody. This is an enemy that must be met with the same resolve we've always shown an enemy that thinks themselves superior. Father himself tried to initiate a scorched earth policy to deny the enemy all the territory between Sadera and Alnus."

Zorzal paused with his same look of displeasure. "One that almost would have worked had the enemy not fortified Italica when they did—"

Piña felt her a knot in her stomach grow, one far worse than what she had felt before. She struggled as she tried to get the words out, hoping she had misheard what Zorzal had said.

"I-Italica? What do you mean?"

Zorzal raised an eyebrow. "Surely you knew, sister? Those bandit raids in the surrounding areas around Alnus were paid off, a promise to pardon them of their transgressions in return for service. We certainly couldn't lose face now could we? Italica was far too important to lose and we hardly had the forces or time necessary to completely occupy it, so it was deemed best to simply raze it to the ground and keep moving back." He paused and clicked his tongue. "Unfortunately, the plan backfired and not a single one of them came back. A shame. Had our enemy not been able to rapidly take and hold territories, it might have succeeded."

 _We would kill our own people to ensure victory? Have we truly stooped so low?_

"Sister? You look like as though you've seen a ghost."

Piña broke free from her haze. "Why did father not tell me of this?"

Zorzal simply shrugged. "Perhaps he didn't deem it necessary, he knows how sentimental you can get. That weakness of yours has no place when victory is on the line."

"Weakness? Victory? We would stoop so low as to hire bandits to terrorize and destroy our own lands?" Piña clenched her fists. "It's no wonder our people have flocked to the enemy as fast as they have."

"Traitors, all of them. Land can be replanted, homes rebuilt and a population can return in time. Honor and dignity cannot, it is a small price to pay."

Piña scoffed. "You talk of honor and dignity yet here we are letting our own people fall victim to wanton killing and the very destruction of their homes."

Zorzal shook his head and sighed. "And this is precisely why father nor I told you of our plans. A woman leading a merry band of pretend soldiers would know nothing of what true war is, what it takes to win. You would do well to learn from my example, sister, or need I remind you of how I handled the rabbit folk? A proud warrior race defeated through strength of arms and cunning."

Piña's face twisted into one of disgust. "You mean _**lies and manipulation**_. I know of your pet, Zorzal. You need not remind me of how you would've lost had you not resorted to those tactics. Strength of arms had nothing to do with it—"

"You would do well to watch your tongue!" Zorzal spat as he took a step forward and looked down at his sister with contempt. "Father may have accepted the daughter of a whore as family, but you are my sister only in title. I am not as forgiving as he is, nor do I overlook insults."

He smirked. "Or did you remember what happened the last time you tried to defy me?"

Piña took a step forward herself, glaring up at Zorzal all the while. She would not back down, the time for fear was over. She had long faced it, started to overcome it and she hadn't done it alone.

"And you would do well to watch your own, brother. I am stronger now, more than you know. Neither myself or my 'merry band of pretend soldiers' are as weak as you think."

"Is that so?" Zorzal glared. "Could it be your time around others has spurred this on? Others not from around here?"

"So, now you call me a traitor."

"Perhaps, I know that you don't stop by the palace as often anymore. I know that those long periods of time such as today go unaccounted for and I know that there are rumors. I also know that you've yet to answer my previous questions. So yes, you could say I have my suspicions."

Piña's glare intensified. "You've always been suspicious of everything, what I do with my time is for father to question not you. I am no child in need of babysitting."

"It is my right to know as crown prince. No, you may not be a child anymore but you are definitely in need of a lesson in respect, one I will gladly give to you now or when my time on the throne arrives."

The pair stood silent for a few moments before Zorzal chuckled and took a step back. "But not today, I did not come here to humiliate my sister in front of her 'friends.'"

"But of course, brother. How thoughtful of you."

 _Coward._

"I have been known to be, yes, from time to time. Regardless, my questions from before still stand—"

"Unhand her this instant!"

Both of the royals promptly paused from their conversation and looked in the direction of this new voice. One of the younger girls from before struggled against the grip of one of Zorzal's men, a strange piece of clothing in her other hand. Meanwhile, two of Piña's knights and the girl's parents rushed towards the commotion. The princess glared at her brother before hiking her dress up and running towards the developing situation, her eyes going wide as she got a better look at what the young girl was holding.

It was one of the Marine's hats.

 **XXXXXXX**

"Son of a _**bitch** **!**_ Who the fuck's the dumbass who left his fucking cover behind!?"

Seeing the event beginning to escalate, the recon lieutenant lowered his binoculars and ran back to the Humvee sparing no time in getting back on the radio. Meanwhile, the rest of his men began replacing boonie covers with kevlars as they did one last look over on their weapons.

There was no telling where this would go.

"CP, CP, this is Bandit. Be advised we have a situation developing."

Silence for a few seconds.

"This is CP, say again?"

"We have a situation developing. One of Zorzal's men started heckling one of the civilians. There's a lot of hands on swords right now."

More silence.

"Copy your last. Is Piña nearby? Is she safe?"

The sergeant riding shotgun continued to aim through his carbine's RCO. "She's still good sir, she pried the asshole off that girl. Zorzal's making his way over now as are the rest of his assholes. Whatever's going on is only getting worse, more of Piña's knights just showed up too."

The lieutenant nodded in response before returning his attention back to the radio. "That's an affirm, but things are only getting worse now. Looks like a hell of an argument is starting to break out."

More silence.

"Copy, continue to monitor."

"What if the situation continues to escalate? Do we have permission to assist?"

"Wait one."

More silence, the lieutenant could see his men were getting restless now.

"Bandit, this is CP. That's… a negative. You are ordered to allow Piña's knights to handle the situation on their own."

All of the other Marines nearby began to swear, some even looking at the lieutenant with outright hatred in their eyes. Politics, the bane of every military. Before the lieutenant could even try to hide his disbelief in a response his sergeant spoke up again.

"Fuck. Swords are being drawn."

No sooner had the sergeant said this, he heard the sound of a bolt action rifle being racked. The lieutenant paused to look through his binoculars at the scene. Sure enough, he could see Piña being flanked by her knights, the girl and her parents behind them as the royals stood defiant against Zorzal and his men. Swords were drawn on both sides and Piña was holding the boonie cover.

"Bandit?"

The lieutenant dropped his binoculars once more and returned his attention to the radio. "Bandit is tracking. Be advised, swords have been drawn and both sides are in a standoff."

Silence once more.

"Copy that. Continue to monitor. Under no circumstances are you to—" The operator suddenly paused for a few moments and for just a moment the lieutenant swore he could hear someone yelling in the background. She returned, her voice sounding as though her mood had just improved.

"Disregard, Bandit. You are clear to engage at your discretion if you feel the lives of civilians or Piña is at risk. Under no circumstances are you to target Zorzal."

The sergeant did a fist pump with his non firing hand. "Fuck yeah, fucking General Augustine working his goddamn magic."

The lieutenant nodded with a smirk before returning to the call. "Tango, we're tracking. Bandit out." He then promptly returned the handset before dashing off to his snipers, slowing down as he got closer.

"Alright, you're good. If those assholes start swinging you start dropping 'em till only crown prince faggot is standing. Rah?"

One of the snipers gave a thumbs up, not looking away from his spotter scope. "Rah."

The lieutenant promptly took his binoculars back out and watched the scene continue to play out.

"Come on asshole, please please fucking act out of line."

 **XXXXXXX**

"You should tell your lackeys to put their swords away, brother. They might hurt themselves and over absolutely nothing, no less."

"This is an awfully big reaction for a mere misunderstanding, sister."

"Misunderstanding? There's no misunderstanding here. Your lackey attacked one of my guests and for what? A hat?"

Zorzal eyed the boonie cover in Piña's hand before shifting his gaze to her. "A hat with a pattern that looks remarkably similar to the garb worn by our enemy, if the rumors are true."

Piña scoffed "So, we are taking stocks in rumors. Have you even seen our enemy with your own eyes before?"

"It all seems very convenient. You disappear for long periods of time, slinking and sliding around like you have something to hide. Then, you host dinner parties without informing anyone and now suddenly strange hats start popping up in your guests possession?" Zorzal threw his hands up in disbelief. "Forgive my suspicions!"

"You're forgiven. Regardless, she told you it was from a travelling merchant. You want to ask where it came from, go ask him. Even if it was from the enemy it means nothing here, it's a mere piece of clothing and nothing more—"

"A mere piece of clothing? If that hat truly belongs to the enemy, she shames us all by wearing their colors. Of that you cannot argue."

"She's young and foolish! If it was a transgression, it would have been a minor one at best. You are the one shaming us all by sending your dogs on those weaker than you. What sort of self respecting citizen would ever secure their loyalty with a tyrant? It's no wonder it's taken so long for you to secure the throne, though I doubt anyone is complaining over that—"

"I am the crown prince! It is my right to succeed father! You are the daughter of a whore who has no claim on anything! You are a leech who feeds off the status being in the royal family provides! It is you who should feel ashamed!"

Piña stood there silent for a few moments, her knights unflinching in keeping a tight perimeter around her. She took a step forward, her eyes boring into her brother's with a burning hatred.

"Your words fall on empty ears. I have braved much during these past months. You may call me a shameful, you may call me the daughter of a whore, you may say whatever you want. Actions speak louder than words and I have seen very little contribution on your part towards our actions in the war. Even now, my actions speak volumes. I am not afraid of you and I care not for what you have to say. I will gladly go before father and prove my innocence. Take your misconceptions and go back to screwing your pet and cowering in the palace."

Zorzal snarled and almost drew his blade before Piña's knights stepped forward, placing themselves between the two royals. The prince eyed them both with fury.

"You would stand against _**me?!**_ "

One of the knights responded with a stone cold expression. "Our loyalty is to Piña, the Emperor and our people. Not _**you**_."

"Beefeater, Panache, that's enough. We've already seen firsthand how my own brother would attempt to clash steel with me. Surely father will enjoy hearing of this." Piña walked forward, parting the two knights. "If you leave now, I might just forget about all this when I approach father."

Zorzal's henchmen eyed him and the three women with hesitant eyes before scoffing. "Fine. You win this little battle, but mark my words." He pointed an accusing finger at his sister. "I will uncover whatever it is you have been plotting and when I do, you will regret your actions today and ever being born at all."

"We shall see, _ **brother**_."

With that, Zorzal whistled and signaled for his men to make to their horses. Once they were mounted he gave one last hate filled glance at Piña before leading his men off and over the same hill they had came over.

"Your highness? Are you okay?"

Piña nodded at one of the knights before looking at the young girl and her parents. "Yes, but even more so knowing our subjects are as well."

The distraught family merely bowed before making their way back towards everyone else, leaving the princess to eye the hat with exhausted eyes. She examined it for a few moments, gently running a finger across the black eagle globe and anchor with a smile.

 _You were right, James. I do have the courage in me. I can't wait to tell you about this. I know you'll be proud._

"Princess Piña?" One of the knights had a worried face as she put an armored hand on Piña's shoulder.

The princess snapped out of her daydreaming before giving a sigh. "Sorry, I'm quite exhausted. Perhaps it is time for a nap. I still need to think of what I'll tell my father."

"As you wish," they bowed. "Let us escort you back."

With that, the group made their way back to the palace.

 **XXXXXXX**

"Well, that's that."

"Shit, ole girls got some fire in her. Sent big brother packing like a pussy, that's for sure."

"Man I just wanted to fucking shoot one of the bastards."

The recon lieutenant rolled his eyes as his men began to jaw jammer, making his way back to the Humvee and fussing with the radio once more.

"CP, this is Bandit. Zorzal has left the palace; his sister scared him off."

"Say again?"

"His sister scared him off. He wussed out."

The usual silence for a few moments.

"Copy that. You're clear to SP back to Italica."

All of the Marines nearby began to breath sighs of relief as they began packing up their gear.

"Tango CP. Bandit out."

The lieutenant promptly returned the handset before spinning his hand in a signal. "Alright, we're fucking outta here." He paused and looked up at the still circling drone above. "And try not to fucking crash the UAV this time."

 **XXXXXXX**

 **1700 HOURS, CAMP ALNUS, AUGUSTINE'S OFFICE**

"Unbelievable. Un- _ **fucking**_ -believable."

Augustine's face began to turn red as he thought back to what had transpired in the CP, a less than amused Kane watching from in front of his desk.

"So help me understand this. Zorzal the damn near second in command shows up unannounced to the Jade Palace, and we're just not allowed to move in and capture? We have to pack our shit up and do what amounts to running away? Jesus Christ, let's just fucking roll out the red carpet for the insurgency back home while we're at it! 'Don't agitate them,' the fuck kind of bull shit is that? The fuck are they gonna do? Throw spears at us? Play harps? For fucks sake Zorzal was driven off by his teenage sister."

"Sir, it wasn't his call to make. General Hazama is under an immense amount of pressure from back home. It's his politicians, not him. Not that much different from what we went through during our deployments."

Augustine folded his hands on the top of his desk. "No, it's not even close. When we needed to snag someone who was in the enemy chain of command, we did. We sent it up the proper channels, got the clearance and did what we had to do. This asshole waltzed in and there was nothing stopping us from grabbing him. There's no internet here, no media coverage. These assholes have to use messengers on horseback to deliver news."

Kane folded his arms. "Sir, perhaps they're just trying to prevent Emperor Molt from doing anything more drastic. The man was willing to kill off his own people and destroy his own lands to keep anything of worth from us. He's clearly unhinged. At least we know where Zorzal gets it from."

"And Molt! We have special forces teams in the capital, just monitoring. There's nothing stopping us from going in there and getting him either, cut off the head of the snake. We could have this campaign over in no time, Kane, and you know it. It's not a matter of how, but when, and truth be told. I'm getting sick and tired of trying to figure out when 'when' is."

Kane stood there for a few moments. As stubborn as Augustine was there, was a measure of reason to his words and the colonel knew it.

"The longer we sit around twiddling our thumbs, the more time we waste. The world outside is still turning and we need to have our eyes out there just as much if not more than we need them in here. See the charm of this place? That otherworldly one? That secondary to me Kane, we need to get the assholes responsible for Ginza, help establish a new governing body sympathetic to both us and the Japanese and get these people towards potentially becoming members of modern society."

The general got up and made his way to the window, gazing out at the base beyond.

"Evidently, the powers that be find our mission here so important that they deemed it necessary to send not only A-10s, but goddamn F-35s too. The A-10s I understand, those bastards are having a fucking field day with anything and everything that gives us a bad look here. But god damn F-35s? Fifth generation stealth fighters that aren't even officially in service yet? 'Combat data.' Combat data for what? How to kill shit that flies even better? Dropping laser guided ordnance on ground targets? GPS ain't gonna work here."

Augustine eyed a box of Cuban cigars on his desk. He was in need of one after the argument he had with Hazama.

"The sooner we get this done, the better. That's all."

Kane nodded. "I agree wholeheartedly, sir."

"Indeed, so." Augustine returned to his seat. "You said you had some good news for me?"

Kane began flipping through a large notebook. "Yes sir. First is a matter of the Marines. Company commander have been sending up reports. Morale is very high across the board and troop performance remains consistent."

Augustine rolled his eyes. "Well, hell, beating the dog shit out of assholes who think slavery and genocide is fun? Being treated like goddamn heroes from a fantasy story? Sounds like a good gig to any enlisted."

 _Trying to score with the locals and not get caught too no doubt. Sneaky bastards, see what happens if someone fucks up, I'll make you all your asses get put on the burner._

Kane smirked "Seems that way sir, also we now have two very important individuals in our care. One just so happens to be a King Duran, evidently he rules over Elbe and isn't all too happy with the Empire sending him and his men to the slaughter at Alnus. He's been cooperative thus far."

"Hot damn! That's what I'm talkin about Kane!" Augustine clapped his hands. "Out-fucking-standing! Where is he now?"

"Being treated at the BAS. He's old but he's a tough son of a bitch."

"As he should be. Can't keep old war dogs like us down."

"Yes sir. The other is a Yao Ha Dushi." Kane, flipped a page. "She's a dark elf that the Jade Palace convoy picked up enroute to Italica."

Augustine raised an eyebrow "Alright?"

"Sir, she claims to know where the dragon is."

The older officer almost lept from his seat. "And where is it?"

"Elbe, sir. That's where her tribe hails from."

"Right, alright. Good! Now we're making progress! This is what I'm talking about Kane! Where is she now?"

"Italica, sir. She's been hanging around the tankers quite a fair deal. She's hoping they're gonna be the ones who'll save her tribe. They are the 'dragon fighters' after all."

Augustine rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Fucking rockstars. Alright, this is good news. See to getting in touch with some of the unit commanders including our flyboys. We've got some planning to do."

Kane raised an eyebrow. "And what about General Hazama?"

"He may have some shitty leadership, but we'll see him through. I'll talk to him personally."

"Very well, sir."

"Anything else?"

"No sir."

"Right then, you're dismissed."

Kane went to the position of attention, Augustine merely nodding. "Dismissed."

"Good afternoon sir."

As Kane made his way to the door, Augustine stopped him. "Oh and Kane? Try to talk to him, have him see things our way."

"I'll do what I can, sir."

With that, the colonel left Augustine alone with his thoughts. The old officer sat silent for a moment before looking at a map posted on his wall, a series of red X's being where the dragon had been spotted.

"Oh, your ass is _**grass**_. Maybe this time those 'Lightning Boys' will see the job through to the end."


	27. Play of The Game

**Chapter 25: Play of the Game**

 _"There are only two types of aircraft — fighters and targets."_

 _Doyle 'Wahoo' Nicholson, USMC_

 _Sometime before the events of the Jade Palace meeting..._

 **1000 HOURS, AIR SPACE ABOVE THE BORDER OF ELBE, FALMART**

* * *

 **Shiki's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 32: Bob Dylan "Like a Rolling Stone"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

For Myuute Luna Sires, it felt like only yesterday that her quality of life took a complete turn for the better. She had gone from living a life as an orphan and forced into banditry to being a part of something greater.

No longer did she live life on the run and in the worst of conditions. Instead, she had a warm bed to go back to and living conditions the likes of which she had never experienced before. No longer was she looked down upon for being non-human, instead she was respected and highly sought after as a source of knowledge and a great many curious questions. No longer were her abilities used for ill. Instead, they were used to enforce order and to protect those in need. No longer did she feel alone. Now, she had a new sense of belonging, something she considered the closest thing to family she could ever have.

No longer would she ever have to dream of flying, for now she was experiencing it and in the same "hel-a-cop-ters" that had once threatened her life outside of Italica that fateful attack.

And all of this was thanks to the Coalition.

Myuute couldn't help but smile as she thought about all this, her eyes glancing at the new custom uniform she wore before looking out at the passing landscape. Like many other members of her species, flying was all but a distant dream. Sure, sirens had the look of avian creatures, but their wings and feathers were all very much useless in aiding in flight. This didn't stop them from practicing wind magic, however, the end state being something that could aid them in reaching their goal. Only a select few could refine the magic in such a way to be able to achieve flight and Myuute certainly wasn't one of them. This was fine by her. Her species could never hope to come close to the level of flight the coalition had mastered and this new method of flying certainly felt superior to her.

It also came with plenty of protection too: thick metal, speed, and roaring thunder.

"How you feeling back there, Myuute!?"

Myuute's train of thought was interrupted as the familiar voice of the helicopter's pilot Captain Shiki called out through the strange headpiece she wore. When Myuute had made her dream of flying known to the coalition, Shiki had been one of the pilots to step forward and respond to the request. This was, of course, met with rolled eyes and protocol being brought up multiple times. A civilian couldn't just go on joyrides whenever they wanted. Ultimately, it was a Colonel Kane and General Hazama who had personally okay'd Myuute's request, stating that for all the assistance she had given to the mission, it would be criminal to rob her of something they believed she earned. She did serve as one of Alnus's chief local MPs and translators.

On two conditions, however. First and most importantly, Myuute was not to use magic at all during her flights. The last thing the chain of command wanted was losing track of their helicopters while they were off conducting missions. Second, she was not to accompany the helicopters during any missions in which they were being spun up for offensive action, she would only be allowed to accompany them on simple reconnaissance missions.

Such as the one she was on now, her fifth flight total between riding on American and Japanese helicopters and her third one with Shiki. For this mission, they were to scout ahead near the border of Elbe, one of the Empire's vassal states. The good word was that the Coalition had someone in its custody who could potentially sway the Kingdom to its cause, a future political ally and area to further spread the coalition's reach. No matter how advanced it was, the coalition simply didn't have the time to effectively monitor every nook and cranny of Falmart. While the FOBs had been effective in setting up an efficient sphere of influence, that sphere was limited to the area between the Capital and Alnus, or the "Corridor" as it was better known. Maintaining this corridor was no easy task, even with the technology the coalition had. Besides suppressing banditry, imperial insurrectionists, and hostile fauna, it also had a deep game of hearts and minds to play. Working with the UN peacekeepers to establish safe trade routes, the creation of medical centers and schools, and even working with Falmartian politics. The Coalition simply had its hands tied, hands it wanted to keep tied down in an easily manageable manner. Having to devote man power to effectively push out further would just complicate things. This wasn't like Operation Enduring Freedom, a war in which just about every NATO country was chipping in towards the goal of bringing stability to Afghanistan. No, "Operation New Dawn" consisted of a Marine expeditionary brigade, a slowly de-escalating JSDF strike force and enough UN peacekeepers to help maintain the humanitarian aspect of the mission.

All of which had the outside world breathing down their necks, denying them the opportunity to bring in anything more than what they had, some of which may or may not had been kept classified from everyone barring the highest echelons of Japanese and U.S. leadership.

Which was where Shiki's recon mission came in. A small rotary reconnaissance outing using assets not absolutely vital to the mission to make sure the Empire wasn't trying to move personnel from elsewhere. The coalition would deal with Elbe in due time. Fine by Shiki's team and Myuute. They just wanted to get out of Alnus for a while despite with all the luxuries it provided.

Myuute adjusted her headpiece before talking into it. "No matter how many times I've done this, it never gets old. I love flying!"

The Japanese pilot looked back over his shoulder at the siren, his usual cheerful face partially hidden by his black sunglasses and helmet. "That's the spirit! I feel the same way every time I do this too! I love my job!"

One of the men manning the helicopter's weapons next to Myuute laughed. "I think you're just excited because they don't send us out that much anymore!"

Shiki didn't look back as he slowly raised a middle finger, a gesture from his world that Myuute had learned literally meant "Fuck off." "Shut up Tomo, you know damn well you're excited too! They always send the Americans out for just about everything! That's just a load of crap, if you ask me! Too much time at base dulls the skills!"

"Hey, that's fine by me! Less maintenance I gotta do on this old bird! Besides, they got the better helicopters. If command wants them to do the heavy lifting, that's okay by me! Hell, let the Americans plow right through to the capital for all I care! I would like to not have to constantly hear their music however!"

Shiki promptly smacked the instrument panel in front of him before turning around and pointing an accusatory finger at his door gunner. "Hey, you watch your mouth! This is a damn good helicopter! Who cares if she doesn't have the latest in avionics or engine! You best show some respect; she can hear you you know! And don't you dare bad mouth Bob Dylan! I happen to like American music among other things, so you can take that opinion of yours and shove it! This is my bird and don't you forget it!"

Myuute smiled as the crew continued their banter. It was always like this on both the American and the Japanese helicopters. After a few hours of flight, the men would start saying all sorts of things to pass the time: jokes, stories, some would even talk to Myuute about their lives back home and what their world was like. On lucky days like today, they'd even play music through the headpieces or even on big loudspeakers, but that usually happened more on two American helicopters that went by the name of "Wagoner" and "Bay-Toe-Van."

The siren watched as Shiki's "wingman" zipped by, their helicopter designed purely for light scouting and small fights if the situation arose. So far, Myuute learned that helicopters like Shiki's were known as "Hueys" and they were meant to transport troops. Then, there were other ones known as "Cobras." Their job was to literally lay waste to any enemy forces with a multitude of different weapons. There were other bigger helicopters such as the "Shin-Hook" and "Super-Stallion" that could even transport more troops than the Hueys but Myuute had never been able to ride in them.

She could never figure out why the helicopters were given such strange names however and when asked about this, the pilots and other troops merely shrugged in response. What she did figure out though was that the Americans had superior versions of the helicopters the Japanese flew. Evidently, they had a great deal more money devoted to the the pursuit of warfare and always ensured their weapons were at the top. In fact, much of the equipment the Japanese used were apparently older versions of what the Americans currently used.

The reason of which was a lot deeper than Myuute had expected when she asked: old enemies becoming new friends. It made sense. Myuute was their enemy once and now here she was flying with them.

Now, the familiar forests of the mainland had started to be replaced by the jagged rocks and open arid terrain that defined Elbe. As Myuute lost herself back in her thoughts while enjoying the view, she hardly paid any attention to the series of events that had started to transpire.

"Alnus Main, this is Shogun. Be advised, we've hit the border near Elbe. Things are looking pretty clear. No sign of Imperial forces or otherwise. Shogun Two should be relaying feeds back to you now. We good to turn around?"

Silence for a few moments followed by loud static.

"Alnus Main, this is Shogun. Radio check, over."

More static.

"Myuute! You're not doing anything back there are you!?"

Upon hearing Shiki call her name, Myuute snapped back to reality before fidgeting with her headpiece. "No, I remember the rules, Captain. I'm not casting anything."

There was more silence before Shiki's wingman came over the net. "One, this is Two, we can hear you just fine. We might be outside of radio range. That, or our long range comms are on the fritz. Blame the tech boys, not Myuute."

"See, I told you our gear needs fine tuning."

"Shut up Tomo!" Shiki sighed before shaking his head. "Right, well, looks like we'll just have to get back in range and let Alnus know how it went when we RTB. Two, we're done here, let's not overextend our welcome."

"Copy that."

Myuute braced herself as she felt the helicopter bank around hard before leveling itself out as the flight proceeded as normal. Or, something close to normal as no sooner had the helicopter leveled out the sun's bright shine had been replaced by a slowly growing shadow.

There weren't any clouds out.

Myuute's blood froze in her veins as her eyes went wide, there was only one thing that could blot out the sun's light. One thing that everyone had almost completely stopped talking about after it had been driven from the skies it had called home above the mainland.

The Fire Dragon.

It had flown above them in order to drop down for an ambush. It knew it couldn't match the faster aircraft the Coalition had or the heavier ground weapons they possessed, but strange slower aircraft that lacked the characteristics of the meaner ones might work if it played its card rights.

Which it had just done. Nobody ever pegged the beast as being stupid. It had been playing hide and seek with a growing level of cunning.

"Shogun One, hard right, now!"

Myuute had barely been able to utter the first letter of the beast's name over the headpiece before her world began to flip upside down as the helicopter took evasive maneuvers, a large winged shape just barely missing it as the airframe shook. Thankfully, neither Myuute nor Tomo were at risk of falling out, their harnesses keeping them firmly secured but no less shaken up as a frantic chase began.

"One, full throttle! He's right behind you!"

"Everyone hang on!"

Myuute felt a pit in her stomach grow as the helicopter began to twist and turn every which way as it tried to dart around hills, trees, anything to keep the beast off their tail. Meanwhile, Tomo, the other gunner, and Shogun Two began angling their weapons onto the dragon. The chattering fire was audible over the rushing wind and chopper blades as they fired back at a large red mass rapidly closing the gap.

That wouldn't work and Myuute knew it. She had heard the stories, what it took to wound the dragon. Neither Shiki nor his wingman's helicopter had the firepower, armor, or speed necessary to be a match for the beast in this situation. Shiki knew that too, the Japanese pilot frantically working with his copilot as they tried to maintain control over their aircraft.

"Alnus Main, Alnus Main! This is Shogun! Be advised: we are being pursued by Big Red! We need immediate air support!"

No response.

"Any station this net, any station this net, be advised: we are being pursued by Big Red and we need support _**now**_!"

Still no response.

Shiki had just started swearing in Japanese over the net as Myuute spoke. "Captain! Perhaps I could be of assistance!? If I use my magic, perhaps i can propel us forward fast enough to kee—"

"No! We need to keep the nets free and clear. We gotta keep pushing forward and break out of this dead zone!"

"But Captain, time isn't something we have! If I can jus—"

"I said no! Myuute, just hang on. We have to do things our way!"

As Myuute tried to voice her complaints once more she saw a dull orange light slowly growing in brightness.

The dragon was going to live up to its name once more, using its trademark method of fiery destruction.

Tomo yelled over the sound of his weapon as he continued trying to drive the beast off. "Boss, its now or never! That thing's about to cook our asses! Let Myuute do her thing!"

As Shiki's, Myuute's and Tomo's words filled the net with inaudible chatter, a number of things happened. First, the helicopter did vastly increase speed as it was enveloped in a small green light, Myuute had evidently decided to act on her better judgement. Second, the dragon did get a small burst of fire out of its mouth before an explosion slammed into the side of it. This had actually aided in not only throwing off its aim, but also stunning the beast just long enough for the two helicopters to continue to speed off.

Third, a new voice had came over the net using a call sign nobody had ever heard before.

"Shogun, this is Lightning. We have you and Big Red on our scope. We'll take care of things from here."

Fate or dumb luck had worked in Shogun's favor that day. Unbeknownst to both them and anyone else that wasn't on the need to know basis, two aircraft had been off conducting fire and maneuver exercises not very far away from the helicopters.

F-35 Lightning IIs, the B variant operated by the Marines and one of the Coalition's best kept secrets.

 **XXXXXXX**

When Willhelm had been present at the battle of Ginza in his Harrier, he had felt nothing short of extreme satisfaction knocking targets that couldn't fight back out of the sky. When he was later told he would be deploying beyond the gate in support of combat operations he was absolutely ecstatic. Knocking out ground targets with impunity was an important and thrilling task in previous deployments, and doing it in another world only amplified that feeling ten fold.

When he was told he'd be deploying in one of the world's most advanced upcoming fighters, one his love for aviation and solid career had netted him a job helping test in the first place, he felt absolutely honored. He personally saw the tarp covered pieces of the aircraft get trucked in through the gate, the coalition was doing its absolute best to keep the existence of the aircraft in Falmart a secret. This was one move the media wouldn't get to scrutinize.

This came at further price, however.

Both Willhelm and his wingman had their own hangar and were typically only able to fly at odd hours of the day or night. They couldn't even talk about what they flew and those who did any mock engagements were under extreme threat of punishment should word trickle back to the outside over their presence.

So when Willhelm heard the slightly distorted distress call over his radio and heard that the fire dragon was nearby, both him and his wingman were nothing short of chomping at the bit to finally be the first ones to fire the aircraft's weapons in anger and save friendly forces in doing so.

Notionally killing F/A-18s and F-4s at did get old after awhile, the angry American and Japanese pilots trying to figure out why they were getting pinged from miles away by aircraft they couldn't see in mock engagements.

Willhelm watched from his helmet's display as his AIM-120 collided with the dragon, a shot he had taken from miles out just as the distress call came over the net. The beast had simply never seen it coming, thou in its defense, there weren't many modern aircraft that probably would have either. Hell, his wingman probably wouldn't have been able to verify the shot as easily had it not been for the advanced HMDS GEN III they both wore.

A helmet that allowed them see everywhere around the aircraft in crystal clear high definition.

"That's a hit, One. He took a beating from that. Be advised, he's still moving though. Probably trying to figure out where that shot came from."

Willhelm shook his head before looking at his aircraft's displays, his eyes darting over each individual weapon readout. "Yeah, I didn't think he'd lie down so easily. How're you looking on ordinance?"

There was a slight pause as the other pilot gave his readouts a quick look before responding.

"Got some long range and short range missiles."

"Mavericks? We're trying to kill the damn thing, not play patsy with it."

"Yeah, I still have one. You wanna guide it in for me?"

"Yeah sure, I'll be your Huckleberry."

Willhelm smiled as he saw the two helicopters continue to gain distance from the dazed dragon. They were safe now. This meant the beast was Lightning's to play with. The captain watched as the dragon then proceeded to get up from the hill it had slammed into before starting to fly erratically in the opposite direction.

It was running away, not on Lightning's watch. Willhelm promptly radioed back to Alnus's CP.

"Alnus Main this is Lightning One. Be advised, Shogun is out of the killbox. You want us to continue engaging Big Red?"

"You are cleared to continue, Lightning, but do not pursue. Fire off your remaining ordinance and escort Shogun back to base."

"Copy that." Willhelm then switched back to a closed channel between him and his wingman. "Well, you heard 'em, let the bastard have it."

As Willhelm got another clear lock onto the dragon he paused for a moment. Here in this world, this beast had probably laid waste to countless villages and heroes. An unstoppable force of nature. Who knew how many stories were made or how many generations of individuals had tried to contain it.

And here the coalition was smacking it around like a mere child's plaything.

Welcome to the modern era, bitch. Man rules himself. Not you or anything else.

"Two, I got him painted. Go ahead and fire."

"Solid. Rifle, rifle."

Willhelm continued to designate the target as his wingman fired, a flawless transfer of control to the captain in mere seconds. It was a long shot, but one easily made using the F35's targeting suite.

No sooner had the had missile hit and knocked the dragon down to the earth in a ball of fire, both jets opened their internal weapons bays once more as they locked the beast with their missiles.

"Fox Three."

"Fox Three."

Both jets proceeded to fire missile after missile into the cloud of smoke, still nowhere near close to the beast as they continued their long range onslaught. The dragon had just gotten its first real taste of BVR, Beyond Visual Range, the concept of being destroyed in the air miles away by an unseen foe. It was the way the modern world fought in the skies, impersonal and with long range precision.

Willhelm couldn't help but whistle at the large cloud of smoke, a nearby pillar of stone having been knocked down and onto the beast.

"Think we got 'em?"

"Uh, yeah I'm pretty damn sure, Two. We launched what, three AAMRAMs and a Maverick into him? He's dead, or damn near close to it. There's no way in hell that big red son of a bitch is getting back up."

"Well, I dunno man. He did take a couple 120s from a goddamn Abrams. Least, that's what I heard."

"He'll learn to stay the fuck away from our guys, that's for sure. Shame the Hogs won't get a piece of em."

"Yeah well, the goddamn Hogs can go cry about it. They took their sweet time getting here. Plenty of other shit for them to kill."

"If you say so. Too bad we didn't get to use the gun pods. Would've been fun to play tag with the bastard."

"Oh no. Two. We're flying turkeys. Pierre Sprey says we can't play games with the other jets."

"Who the fuck's Pierre Sprey?"

"Nevermind, just some dumbass old fucker messing with civilians' heads."

Willhelm shook his head before switching channels. "Alnus Main, this is Lightning One. Big Red's down. Sure you don't want us to verify the kill?"

"That's a negative Lightning. You've already overstayed your welcome out there. Keep an eye on Shogun and bring 'em back to base. After that, you're clear to land back at the hangar."

And be bored out of our minds while we sit around with our thumbs up our asses.

The captain made sure not to key out as he sighed before looking around his aircraft and spotting the two wayward helicopters.

"Solid, Lightning out." Willhelm paused before directing his wingman to follow him towards the choppers, gently gliding through the air as he switched direction. "Oh and tell Lockheed the jets work damn well. Thanks for letting us out to play today main."

The female voice on the other end of the line chuckled. "Solid, Lightning. We'll be sure to do so."

With that, the two fifth generation stealth fighters screeched through the air as they made their way back towards the helicopters.

I fucking love this thing.

 **XXXXXXX**

Shiki let out a long sigh as the helicopter began to slow down back to its normal speed. "Everyone good?"

A series of thumbs up and rogers came over the net before the captain called back to Myuute, his voice filled with exhaustion as the adrenaline began to wear off. "Myuute, good looking back there. I'm sorry for shooting down your idea like that—"

"No offense taken, captain. Your decision wasn't uncalled for. I'd be lying to you if I didn't admit that even my own faith in my abilities isn't concrete. I still have much to learn."

"Ah, don't worry about it!" Tomo gave Myuute's shoulder a reassuring pat before lighting up a cigarette, making sure Shiki couldn't see him. "You pulled us out of a tight spot."

Shiki gave a thumbs up in response before looking around his cockpit. "What I want to know is who the hell Lightning is. They're not on any of the damn list—"

"One, this is Two. We got friendlies at our three and nine o' clock. I think they wanna say hi."

Myuute quickly joined the rest of the crew is looking out at the side of the helicopter as two sleek aircraft with short wings began to fly in line with them, the Japanese pilots merely shaking their heads as they waved.

"Shogun, this is Lightning. You boys good?"

"Yeah, good looking. Thanks for the assist, Lightning. Say, uh... You wouldn't mind telling us where you got those nice digs?"

One of the pilots laughed. "Bring it up with Lockheed. You'll be getting yours soon. Anyways, we'll be escorting you back to base. Say, you mind doing us a favor?"

"Sure."

"You didn't see us, check?"

"Didn't see what?"

"Exactly."

"I don't think stealth works like that though."

"Yeah yeah, whatever. We'll be keeping an eye on you. Just wanted to let you know we're here."

With that the aircraft began to gain altitude before picking up speed and screeching off, leaving the Japanese and Myuute to ponder on the event.

"One, what the hell were those?"

"F35s, new American jets. They're not even officially in service yet."

"F35s?"

"New stealth aircraft. Top of the line stuff according to what's known about 'em. Apparently our government's set to buy em too."

Shogun Two's pilot laughed. "Goddamn Americans always bringing the biggest boom to the smallest fights, huh?"

As the pilots exchanged banter Myuute watched as the aircraft flew off.

"I want to fly in one of those next."

Following Shogun's return to base a long period of silence regarding the dragon would follow. No coalition forces were to leave the sphere of influence without heavy escort and firepower.

Nobody had bothered to check on its death either, the focus of the operation too stuck on what was going on in mainland Falmart. The beast was interfering with operations and as far the coalition was concerned, the beast was dead if not completely incapacitated.

Until someone reminded them of unfinished work that is and set off a series of events that would play out in a way noone had expected.

* * *

 _Present day.._

 **1800 HOURS FORMAL ESTATE MEETING ROOM, FOB ITALICA**

Joyce rubbed his exhausted eyes in irritation. "So let me see if I get this straight. You're telling me it's still alive?"

Yao nodded her head fidgeting in her chair as she dropped the unpleasant news. "Yes and although it's been robbed of its ability to fly it's still no less dangerous. It now preys upon my people and anyone else at night with great vengeance when it ventures forth from its den in a mountain." The dark elf pointed at a map she had brought with her. "Right here."

The Marine major promptly took a sip from his coffee mug, setting it back down before folding his arms. "And you know beyond the shadow of a doubt that it's there?"

"Yes, some of our best trackers died bringing us this information."

Joyce sighed before looking over at Myui, the countess having long cut her hair short in an attempt to emulate the female Marine and Japanese soldiers. She looked up to them as a symbol of strength, many of them did command troops after all. She was no longer a skittish young girl, but a developing leader and it showed in the stern face she now wore. She was just as important to this meeting as any high ranking coalition officer

"Major, though this is an issue that does not plague our territory it is still no less important. If we are to sway the Kingdom of Elbe to our side we must rid them of this problem. King Duran is a wise and rational man, if we can aid him in returning to the throne and slaying this beast once and for all it will greatly aid us not only militarily but in trade. Elbe is in control of great mineral deposits and precious metals among other things."

Joyce nodded in agreement. "That's a outstanding course of action if I ever heard one Countess, no doubt my superiors will agree." He then looked at Major Kiba, the liaison to the Japanese presence that helped the Marines run Italica. "Your thoughts major?"

The elderly Japanese officer fixed his glasses before glancing once more at the map with a finger under his chin. "I agree wholeheartedly Joyce, no doubt my superiors will think the same. Hopefully General Hazama can convince the politicians back home to stop holding us back and allow us to help aid in a joint operation."

Joyce nodded at the Japanese officer before smiling at the countess. "Well there you have it, good looking countess."

Myui couldn't help but smile. The past few months the Marine Major had become a fatherly figure to her as he helped guide her along the path to leadership even helping her pass various new bills and laws. Indeed Joyce had remarked she often reminded him of his own daughter he had back home, something that always brought a smile to the countess's face whenever she thought about it.

Yao's ears perked up as she heard this news. "So can you help me? Will you marshal your forces? Will you send the dragon fighters?"

"Yes, if there's one things Marines can't stand it's leaving jobs half finished." Joyce leaned in to further emphasize his next point. " _ **But you'll need to give us some time to work through this**._ Running our operations here has been trial and error thus far, what you see now is the culmination of months of hard work and a great deal of learning. We can't just send a strike team without first looking at the big picture and ensuring the least amount of risk for our forces."

The dark elf's face stayed as stoic as possible. "Time may not be something my people have Major, but an answer is better than no answer. I will try to ride out in a day or so's time to inform them of the plan. We are a hardy people and have faced many adversities, we also honor our debts. Should this quest of yours succeed we pledge our loyalty to both you."

She paused knowing the biggest key to her people's salvation was right outside the estate, some of the men engaged in talks within the mansion. "And the dragon fighters."

Myui smiled. "Please stay as long as necessary, we have food drink and board here. This is place is second in safety and security only to Alnus itself."

"Even safer than the capital?"

Joyce nodded. "Quite, there's not many places in mainland Falmart we don't have some sort of presence in Miss Ha Dushi. You can rest easy."

Yao sighed in relief. "This is great news and I am thankful for your hospitality. If it's fine with you I'd like to spend some time with the 'Horsemen', there's a great deal I wish to talk to them about."

"Very well. Captain Aldritch is an outstanding warrior as are his men. Do be sure to talk to Captain Itami as well, for it was he who greatly aided in their endeavors both against the dragon and helping set the foundation for what you see Italica as today."

Yao nodded before slowly standing up. "Majors Joyce and Kiba, Countess Myui." She bowed. "Both my people and I thank you for your assistance during these troubled times."

Both of the majors promptly stood up and exchanged handshakes with her. "The coalition is here to help bring stability to this world and help bridge both it and ours together. We are not conquerors here but liberators. It was the Empire that brought us here and it is the Empire who left a mess behind for us to clean up. It is a task we take to with great pleasure as well."

With that the dark elf left the room, meeting up with Captain Aldritch in the hallway and following him out of earshot.

"To see a dark elf with my own eyes, I never thought I'd see the day." Myui joined the majors in glancing at the map once more. "She wasn't like the legends."

"Legends have a habit of doing that countess." Joyce pointed at the photo of the dragon next to the map. "Like the dragon ruling the skies and being unkillable."

"Yes, but it looks like we have a great deal of work ahead of us." Kiba nodded in approval.

"And a great deal of stress too."

* * *

 **Short Chapter after a long period of absence, believe me I know. This was the ONLY way to effectively set up the dragon arc without drowning all of you in a ocean of 10k+ words. Truth be told, I uh kinda haven't had the brain capacity for writing that many words in one chapter lately.**

 **I won't sit here and drown you all with veteran's shit, just know I wasn't "Quite there" these past couples weeks. So much so I came dangerously close to abandoning writing for a while. But Marines don't give up and we sure as hell don't quit. I'm back on my shit and we're back at it.**

 **I wanted to once again say thank you to all of you for being here from the beginning and also welcome to some of my new readers. So as ever, I'll see you guys in the reviews.**


	28. It's Not Our Home, But We'll Make It One

So here we are again...after months.

If you want the honest answer? I came about THIS close to ending the story, TLDR I was bombarded with doubt about what to do for future chapters. Ya'll know I'm big on logic above all things and quite frankly there were some plot ideas I have coming up that I was just unsure of how to handle.

I unfucked that and now I'm back on track.

There was also school and just general laziness so I apologize for that. I also want to take this time to say thank you to my readers and everyone who's got my reviews follows and favorites to the being the top in the category.

We fucking out here gents, been a long time running now.

Anyways, I won't keep you. Eat this shit up, it's good for you.

Oh and enjoy lol.

* * *

 **Chapter 26: It's Not Our Home, But We'll Make It One All the Same**

" _Your soul may belong to Jesus, but your ass belongs to the marines._ "

Eugene B. Sledge, With the Old Breed: At Peleilu and Okinawa

 **1830 HOURS FOB ITALICA**

Aldritch let out another sigh as he and his new guest continued on their way through Italica's bustling streets. No matter how much the captain had reassured Yao that she and her people would indeed be saved, the dark elf just wouldn't let up.

Question after question was thrown at the Marine from the moment they had left the mansion and even with all the patience he had Aldritch was getting tired of it. He was sore, hungry, smelled like crap and still had platoon commander things to do.

Soon to be company commander things to do if his his recent suspicions about Charlie company's possible postponing of its divestment ***** were true.

"Miss Ha Dush-."

Aldritch grunted as he suddenly halted at a large intersection, causing a still rambling Yao to bump into him as a white painted LAV III rolled past. This one belonged to New Zealand, one of the two countries in ANZAC that had been allowed to contribute to the UN's mission in assisting the coalition. Its crew looked absolutely bothered as it was guided through by some other troops.

Once the heavy diesel engine's roar faded off into the distance Aldritch peeled a startled Yao off of him before continuing, the elves eyes still fixated on the vehicle as it drove off.

"Miss Ha Dushi I understand your concern regarding your home and its people. As I've stated numerous times before help is coming, you only need to give my superiors some time."

The dark elf fixed her heavy cloak as she nodded. "I understand perfectly Captain."

Aldritch began to walk forward a few steps and stopped as he waited for Yao to catch up. "So then you'll have to excuse any potential rudeness my next question has. But why are you still following me? If you need help finding the inns one of the peacekeepers around here should be able to point you in the right direction."

Yao shook her head as she continued to follow the captain, her gaze occasionally hovering towards the many posters lining the walls of houses. Each one depicted different scenes of coalition troops helping locals with various tasks or standing watch over them. Others even had helpful information or just words of encouragement for those experiencing misfortune with the war.

"I apologize if I'm delaying you from any tasks you might have Captain Aldritch, I merely wish to get to more about the men who my people will be looking to for salvation."

Aldritch shook his head once more. "Well we're pretty busy men."

"I won't get in the way, I can wait."

"But there's no telling how long that'll be."

"I'll be in Italica for quite some time."

The captain promptly stopped and turned around to face the elf, a look of mild discomfort on his face. "You're very persistent Miss Ha Dushi."

"My people and myself are able to endure much." Yao raised an eyebrow. "Or is it perhaps you don't want me around? Do I irritate you? Or do I have the appearance of someone who might try to stab you in the back?"

Aldritch swore he could feel a blood vessel burst as he stopped and rubbed his eyes, the elf just wouldn't let up.

Hearts and minds James, hearts and minds.

The captain glared at Yao for a few moments. A fruitless endeavor as she was clearly not intimidated by his expression, in fact, she returned it in kind. This had actually sent a slight chill up Aldritch's spine, the elf didn't exactly have the look of a pushover.

"Fine, but do me a favor and don't cause a ruckus. We bring enough attention to ourselves as it is."

Yao nodded as she went to follow the Marine once more. "You have my word."

"It's not you I'm so much worried about."

 _It's those clowns_

 **XXXXXXX**

As the pair finally reached Italica's northern entrance, Yao gave some pause at the scene in front of her. Tucked away in the furthest most corner of the courtyard and completely oblivious to the comings and goings of the regular hustle and bustle of the markets sat one of the strangest military bastions Yao had ever seen.

Strange white cube like structures sat in a row and against one of Italica's walls. The doors and windows on their fronts were a clear sign they were houses but their architecture was in stark contrast to that of Italica's or even anything that was typical in Falmart. What was even stranger were the thick ropes extending from them and over towards a short green box. The box shook violently as it growled, like its labor was being put towards the structures themselves. Whatever it was providing Yao wasn't sure, but she had seen many boxes like it before during her trip over with Aldritch. They were always next to any of the buildings the strange soldiers occupied.

Meanwhile, a strange dark green and brown net jutted up and over all the structures. Yao quickly deduced that the purpose for this was two fold. One, it provided shade for inhabitants of the structures, the table and chairs outside were a dead giveaway. Two, it provided camouflage from anything airborne.

Not that these men probably feared the skies. No, that belonged to their army.

Last, but certainly not least, two flags sat crisscrossed against a small sign near the structures. On one flag was adorned the same star adorned small blue box with red and white stripes Yao had seen at the entrance to Italica and next to a few others. No doubt this was the flag of the country they served. Its sister flag was far more simplistic compared to any of the others Yao had seen before. A red flag with what appeared to be a golden eagle globe and anchor in the middle. Over it sat some letters Yao couldn't hope to understand and a single solitary letter in the bottom right corner of the flag. No doubt the standard of their order. That was strange considering Yao hadn't seen Aldritch display these colors anywhere when she had stopped his convoy. Most armies always had their standard bearers in front.

Finally, the sign both flags had been laying against had artwork of what looked to be four skeletal knights. Each one was garbed in a different suit of armor and riding atop one of the "tanks". Yao couldn't make heads or tails of this, perhaps it was religious artwork?

It was worth noting that despite all these strange sights bits and pieces of Falmart itself had made their way into the living area. Local tapestries adorned the walls of some of the structures and sat displayed next to the standards of conquered Imperial armies. Small stone statues and wooden artworks sat out and arranged for any and all to see, Yao could tell some had been gifted to the soldiers or perhaps even bought.

It was like as if these men had embraced Falmart in all of its aspects. This only made sense considering what Yao saw next was a parallel of two different worlds if she had ever seen one.

Everywhere Yao looked she saw Aldritch's men doing just about everything and anything. Some sat smoking atop their giant metal steeds, or "tanks" as she was told they were called. The strange mechanical contraptions sat off to the side of the white structures and in a neat row, their snouts all pointed in the air. Meanwhile, other soldiers threw strange bright colored balls around, their fellows scrambling to catch them as they did their best to not run into local children skittering about trying to join in on the fun.

There were even a few troops completely shirtless, these ones were clearly putting their strength to the test as they did strange exercises with giant metal bars on benches.

All of this went on completely unhindered by what went on in the rest of the courtyard, the other inhabitants continuing to engage in trade with local market dealers. Occasionally the odd wagon or rumbling metal contraption would come through the gate, but other besides that life went on.

It was unlike anything Yao had ever seen before. Both sides had grown to completely trust and accommodate one another. This was a peace and cooperation almost unheard of, especially considering some of the local citizens going about their day weren't human at all. They too were treated with the same fairness and equality given to both the soldiers and anyone else.

For a moment, Yao was filled with a joy she hadn't felt in a long long time. Her people would indeed be saved and have another place to be welcomed.

Unlike Yao however, Aldritch wasn't so amused, this was his day to day life. The magic of it all had faded away quite some time ago, even with how peaceful and homely the area had gotten. He groaned for a few moments, giving his back a quick stretch and turning to face the awestruck elf.

"Alright, welcome to our little slice of heaven. Before I take you over there, some ground rules. Do-"

" _Ey Pollo! Vuelve aquí, estúpido pájaro!_ "

Before Aldritch could continue, a shrill squawking sound cut him off with the telltale signs of unhuman feet stomping the ground as they got closer.

"Oh for fuck's sake!"

In moments a large yellow avian creature dug its claws into the ground as it skid to a halt in front of the distressed captain. The creature easily dwarfed the Marine by a few feet. Its long plumed and elongated neck turning every which way as it began to chirping. Yao watched on with bewilderment as the bird began to nestle its large head under Aldritch chin, causing the Marine to sigh as he attempted to calm it down via pushing it off or small head pats. She had tracked and tamed many a creature for years and as a result she knew the behaviors of many a beast.

This one was happy to see the captain, it had no doubt been tamed by both him and his men.

It did run all the way from the dragon fighter's tank after all, one of the shorter men in the group immediately chasing after the bird while the rest of his fellows simply shook their heads. Yao watched on in confusion as the younger soldier began to ramble off in a language she couldn't understand.

"Ah sir, my bad. Pollo gets like that whenever-"

Aldritch pushed the bird off as he fixed his lopsided cover with a scowl. "Pollo!? You gave this thing a name?!"

"Ah..yes sir. The platoon agreed on that name."

The bird had begun pecking at the ground by now, chirping all the while.

"Lance Corporal Benitez, didn't I tell you to get that bird out of here last night?"

"We did sir. Kincaid and Elton led him outside of the wall and sent him off last night."

Aldritch simply held a hand out to quiet Benitez. The captain already knew the answer, the bird had simply found its way back like it always did. The same way it had always done the last dozens of times.

Evidently this species of rare bipedal avian, Kycklings as they were called, were about as intelligent as domesticated horses. According to Lelei, they also didn't normally grow as fast or as big as Pollo either. A diet of just about everything it could fit into its beak and fed to it by both the coalition troops and curious locals in Italica had seen to that.

It was also worth noting that many of the troops had apparently made a startling discovery. Pollo and the rest of his species bore a strong resemblance to Chocobos. Evidently they were the figurehead to a popular video game series. Aldritch wouldn't know either way, he didn't play games.

Still, Pollo's existence only added to the mystery of why Earth's fictional creatures and myths were so commonplace in this world.

"I..."

Aldritch simply sighed accepting the situation as another loss, he was too burnt out to deal with it. Pollo remained the platoon's unofficial mascot yet again and the line between professionalism and complacency blurred once again. Various onlookers both coalition troop and otherwise had begun carrying on with their business anyways.

Except for the tankers, Aldritch could feel their curious glances being thrown his way even at this distance. Wherever a platoon commander went, the prospect of work went with them.

There was also new pretty face with him to consider.

Typical Marines.

"Find something to do with this bird Benitez, or keep it out of sight. I don't care.."

Benitez fixed his sweat dampened OD green shirt before nodding. "We were planning on asking the Formal clan to take care of him. They have stables and ample room, I'm sure they won't mind."

"If that's what it takes." Aldritch couldn't help but give Pollo's head a firm pat, the bird did have a enduring quality about him. It wasn't like he impeded performance either, in fact he helped keep morale up if anything.

And that's exactly what Aldritch needed above all else, his men in high spirits. They had already missed out on so much and been asked so much of.

"Uh sir? Who's this?"

Aldritch snapped back to the present at the sound of Benitez's question in English. With the back and forth the captain had been doing with his subordinate he almost forgotten about Yao. The dark elf still stood there unmoving and confused, though Aldritch was almost certain she was no less ready to start bombarding his men with questions however.

"The elf we picked up earlier, remember? Knows where the dragon is and all that?"

The young lance corporal snapped his finger in response. "Ah roger that. I'm guessing she?"

"Yes and you know the routine. She can look, 'ooh' and 'aah' at the tank ask simple questions and that's it."

"Yes sir."

"Good."

Aldritch promptly switched his language to that of the local tongue as he introduced Yao formally. "Benitez this is Yao Ha Dushi. She's come here on behalf of her tribe seeking our assistance in finishing the dragon off once and for all."

Yao put a hand on her chest and bowed slightly. "It is an honor."

Benitez unsure of what to do tried his best to imitate the gesture, Pollo mirroring the gesture in kind with a series of clucks as he bowed his head as well.

The bird was really too intelligent for his own good at times.

"Likewise ma'am. I heard you wanted to uh, meet 'us'?"

Yao returned to her original position before nodding. "Quite, I've heard many of the rumors I wish to confirm them for myself. Sometimes the real thing is beyond anything mere tales of fancy can recreate."

Lady you have no idea.

Benitez looked at Aldritch a glare being directed his way in response was all that needed to be said.

Be on your best behavior or so god help me.

Understanding his superior's wishes, Benitez tried his best not to sigh. Aldritch wasn't the only one who had wanted to tend to other things that evening.

"Right this way then.."

* * *

 **CAMP ALNUS, CP, MEETING ROOM**

"Gentlemen, I appreciate you coming here on such short notice. We had been trying to schedule this monthly progress report days ago, but well."

Augustine rubbed his bald head and gave a sigh. "Word changes daily and with all the going ons it's been a busy couple weeks, hell a busy couple months for that matter. And gentlemen? It's only going to get worse from here no doubt."

In front of a mixed audience of officers seated around a large round table, Augustine continued to pace back and forth in front of a large map of Falmart. Meanwhile Hazama stood off to the side as he let Augustine take the lead during the brief. The map was mounted to a large whiteboard and was remarkably accurate considering it had all been done via ground and airborne assets. Back on Earth simple GPS would've mapped everything out quickly and efficiently. Of course, obviously it went without saying that such luxuries were a distant dream in Falmart.

The old general stopped pacing for a moment and began motioning to the board, his hand hovering towards the areas around the capital and Alnus.

"Gentlemen, against all hurdles and technological drawbacks we've been able to successfully stabilize the corridor. Free and unrestricted travel of both our forces as well as that of local traders has finally been achieved and it's all thanks to the efforts of everyone in this room. Let me start this meeting off by saying job well done."

Augustine glanced at the UN officers towards the back of the table and nodded. "Especially to the outstanding ladies and gentlemen of ANZAC and who were able to take some of the load off our troops."

Hazama folded his arms and nodded in agreement. "Indeed, your efforts in helping our troops with the humanitarian aspect of this mission has been invaluable. The citizens who live in the Alnus refugee district as well as those in Italica speak highly of your troops."

The Japanese general chuckled. "The commodities such as the coffee stores and Rec centers have also been great for troop morale too. I was able to catch a showing of Godzilla last night, the irony eh?"

All the officers gave some laughs before Augustine put his hands up to quiet them down rolling his eyes as only a high ranking officer could. He was too old and dedicated to the Corps to be able to busy himself with off duty activities.

Though a phone call to his grand kids over some coffee or a quiet evening reading Tom Clancy always brought him no small amount of joy. The luxuries of being at Alnus.

One of the UN officers, an Australian Colonel, nodded in response to this praise as he set his beret aside. "Anytime gentlemen. When I was told we'd get to work with both our Japanese and American allies again in another world I told the boys to pack their kit in a heartbeat. Shame we couldn't bring more to the party, we'll have to be sure to send Britain a vacation card."

More laughter before Augustine quieted everyone down once more before clearing his throat and pointing back at the board once more.

"Gentlemen, let's get back to business. While the corridor is indeed under our control I'm sure you're no doubt familiar with the occasional enemy airborne scouting element getting swatted out of the sky. The enemy is still out there gentlemen and he hasn't given up yet, we're close to the end but we can't lose focus either."

Augustine pointed at the capital, the photos of Molt and his sons in particular. "The good news is we know who and where the enemy is. Emperor Molt Sol Augustus and his sons Diabo and Zorzal. As it stands, absolute power over the enemy legions goes to Molt himself with his sons able to command piece meal units themselves."

One of the Marine officers present, a Major, raised his hand with Augustine promptly nodding to allow him to speak up in response.

"Sir, I thought we'd taken out most of their legions. My boys have ambushed more enemy patrols then they can care to recall, hell it's been almost a month since we've seen any sort of bonafide resistance save for the odd Imperial sympathizer or insurrectionist here and there."

Other officers nodded in agreement with mumbles before Augustine cleared his throat once more to quiet them down.

"A good point Major and I was just getting to that." He then promptly pointed to another series of photos on the map, grainy images showing what looked like scores of men training in large castle courtyards. Other photos showed lumber yards with the scattered parts of siege engines lying nearby.

"As you can see here, overhead flights have revealed less than stellar intel gentlemen. The Empire is training more men and replacing some of their lost assets, it's a slow process but it's a process none the less."

Some concerned mumbles began to go around the room. As easy to dispatch as the enemy had been in a stand up fight, they were tenacious if nothing else. Nobody was particularly in the mood for another Alnus or Italica if it could be easily avoided.

There were Marines present too. Taking the fight to the enemy was what they preferred to do; not waiting for it to come to them.

Augustine held his hands up once more to quiet the room. "Gentlemen, there's more."

The general motioned towards another officer in the room. This one was in navy attire, his goatee and out of regs haircut was a dead-giveaway that his position was not that of the normal line officer either.

Master Chief Miller, the handler for the Navy SEALS operating in Falmart.

The SEAL sat upright and folded his hands as his gaze went over each and every man and woman present. "Gentlemen, believe the General when says the enemy is replacing their assets. My men have been in the capital and with Japanese Special forces for quite some time now, they operate amongst the people there and in plain sight day and night. There's not a whole lot they don't know that's going on, which means there isn't a lot we don't know that's going on."

He paused for a moment before taking a sip from a nearby water bottle.

"Over the past few weeks to a month, my men have been observing some strange individuals coming in and out of the palace. When I say strange I mean weird robes, giant staffs, all of that shit. Everyone in this room knows that 'Magic' exists here, hell some of you probably got the rare pleasure of fighting something that can use it. So I'm not gonna beat around the bush any longer with what I'm about to say."

He paused for a moment, closing eyes and taking a deep breath. "My men are of the reasonable suspicion Molt's gathering magic users. Mages, magicians, sorcerers, you can call em whatever you want but that's who's been popping up in the capital."

Some more concerned mumbles broke out, this time a Japanese Captain's voice rising among the noise.

"How can your men be sure? Some of our early reports have these magicians garbed not too differently from average citizens. Maybe they're local shamans or priests?"

Miller raised an eyebrow in response. "Because my men were killing some of them off for a while before they got smart and started doing some weird shit that frankly I'm not sure any of you would believe even after being here for so long. There's mages, they're there, and Molt's gathering em. All we know is that some of em are coming from Rondel, others are coming from places that I know for a fact aren't on the map."

Augustine interjected before anyone else could talk, pointing at the map once more and at another location. "For those of you who don't remember or otherwise haven't been in the know. Rondel is a city where individuals with an aptitude for magical talent go to study up. It's also a neutral city which is why we don't have any presence there."

Miller shrugged. "I guess money is more powerful than neutrality to some people sir."

"Perhaps."

One of the U.N. officers leaned forward with a raised eyebrow. "I was of the notion we had countermeasures for them."

Augustine folded his arms. "We do and we don't. During the course of this campaign there's been sporadic instances where the ECM jammers don't exactly render the 'caster' completely helpless. The tech heads are of the mind that is has something to do with individual talent, or 'willpower'. Basically it's like comparing Harry Potter to Gandalf. The more skilled an individual is at using magic, the more focused their mind is. That's not to say they're completely immune to the effects, but they're still capable of putting up a fight and rate the same threat level as any normal caster period."

Some more concerned mumbling among all the officers present ushered forth before another Marine officer spoke up.

"Sir, if the enemy is indeed gathering strength why aren't we mobilizing for an assault? We have all the assets we need and with the assistance of the operators in the capital we stand a good chance of cutting off the head of the snake too. My Marines are ready whenever sir, you just say when.

Other Marine officers nodded in agreement. It was sound reasoning, better to end it all quickly and efficiently than continue to drag their feet.

Augustine exchanged a look of resignation with Kane, the colonel having been quiet throughout the entire meeting knowing this question would eventually come up. The general looked at Hazama and took a step off to the side.

The floor belonged to the Japanese now and the Japanese general knew this. He folded his arms before looking around at each and every officer present, his men knew what was coming next but he knew the Marines didn't.

"Our government is...conflicted on just what sort of action we need to take during this campaign. As you may all very well know, our constitution was just amended but a few years ago allowing us to support both you and any of our other allies in future conflicts. This decision was not easily made and it did not go without backlash. Indeed even today our people aren't unanimously supportive of the campaign like those back home for you. No doubt some of you who got to see the Diet summons saw a brief glimpse of this."

His eyes scanned over the Marines. "Which I once again extend the deepest of apologies for. Had I known both my troops as well as your fellow Marines would be put under such scrutiny on television I would've been more defiant in letting them go back."

By now all the other officers had been sitting in their seats with the most defeated of looks. Once again politics had interfered with military operation, U.S. troops would find themselves fighting with one hand behind their back yet again.

"Even now the Prime Minister is engaged in fierce talks with not only other politicians, but with your commander in chief as well."

One of the UN officers extended a hand to speak up, Hazama allowing him to with a nod.

"Gentlemen I also need not remind you that the UN is here and there's plenty of observers. There's a lot of people looking for dirt to dig up on this, looking for reasons to get us out of here. Indeed you can thank some of our 'friends' for it being such a hassle just for us to contribute assistance. If we go thunder running that capital it'll be Iraq all over again. Definitely nowhere near as many casualties, but the very same backlash."

Hazama pointed to a photo of a young woman on the board. "Which is why we're engaging peace talks with a group of people who we find sympathetic to our cause, or doves as we've taken to calling their faction. Some of you may already know that Emperor Molt does indeed have a daughter, Princess Pina Co Lada. It just so happens that this same princess is on very agreeable terms with not only us, but with many of the doves. It's our hope that they can somehow influence the political process or otherwise sway her father's opinion with her assistance."

The room went quiet for a few moments as all the officers sat there defeated. There was nothing that could be done, another textbook example of hearts and minds with a little bit of hurry up and wait.

They would be here for a while, there was no doubt about that.

Augustine took a step forward. "Listen, I get it. You want to go out there and kick ass and take names. You want to get the assholes who kicked Ginza off and brought us through here. There's a hell of a lot of other problems we need to be focusing on back on the other side of the gate but this is where we are. Our brothers and sisters on the other side have that covered however."

He then began pointing outside the window. "As for us? This is our fight, this is the war to define our generation of war-fighters. I know some of you are being reminded of our last two conflicts too, but I don't think I need to remind you of the magnitude of the work you're doing here. I need all of you to continue being on your A game. Believe me gentlemen our fight is coming."

Augustine pointed to another photo on the board, this one was the furthest from all the others and had an ugly face that everyone recognized.

The dragon.

"We know now exactly where the dragon is and with some help from a new friend of ours we also have a chance to get our hands on a new area of influence as well as the potential for some great trade in the future."

The Marine general cleared his throat, no sooner had he done this the door to the meeting room opened with two new visitors walking in in short order.

The first one was Myuute, a face everyone knew being that she was was Alnus' top translator and leader of a volunteer police force for the refugee area. It was the individual who limped in after her that caused everyone's head to turn.

He was an old man, the scars on his face eyepatch and demeanor had all the signs of a practiced warrior however. The simplistic yet no less fine crafted dark red armor he wore only further added to this education suspicion. Even with the walking stick he used to help support his fake leg he remained no less authoritative in the slightest.

His remaining good eye looked over all of the officers present while he brought a hand up to stroke a grey goatee a small mumble of approval following in short order.

"Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to King Duran. The rightful leader of the kingdom of Elbe and the man who wishes the same kind of justice brought to the Empire as we do."

The old king thumped an armored hand against his chest before speaking in the local tongue, Myuute immediately translating in short order for those who couldn't understand.

"Fellow warriors. It is an honor to finally get to meet you."

His mouth twisted into a smile.

"I have a feeling we'll be of great assistance to one another."

* * *

 **1900 HOURS FOB ITALICA**

During her visit to the Tankers' area Yao quickly came to find out that everything she had heard was an over-exaggeration of the truth. There were also a great deal many other things she still had yet to learn, the elf constantly almost going slack-jawed with greater frequency.

The strange music they constantly listened to, however interesting it may have been, also didn't help. She couldn't make heads or tails of how it was coming from two small black boxes connected to another one or even what sort of instruments were being played.

What she had learned was that they were known as Marines and hailed from an order known as Second Tank Battalion. Their country wasn't in Falmart or even in this world at all. They came from the other side of a "gate" in Alnus and from a land called the United States of America. Evidently the Empire had came through that very same gate and into a country belonging to one of their allies known as the Japanese.

A trespass it had payed dearly for ever since then. To quote one of the Marines who went by the name of Wilkes.

"They came into the wrong fucking house, now we're gonna go into theirs."

That had been all well and fine, but Yao still had plenty more to learn. Such as why and how one of their tanks had Minotaur horns mounted on the front of its head.

 **XXXXXXX**

"So, you're not knights?"

Kincaid had been atop the tank and reading a translated manga Itami had loaned him when Yao's voice came up to him yet again. In truth he was starting to get agitated, every time he went to turn a page he got pelted with another question and it was getting increasingly difficult to read. The gunner sighed before earmarking a page and looking down at the elf.

"Nope. I mean, our superiors like to think we are during their big speeches and everything. I mean, we got the fancy dress uniforms and all but that's only for special occasions."

Kincaid went back to reading as he yelled down to the loader's hatch. "Hey Wilkes, you think we're knights?"

There was some clanking for a few moments followed by the sound of pins and clips being fastened before Wilkes' head emerged.

"Fuck no, and I wish people would stop saying that."

Kincaid looked back down at a confused Yao with a raised eyebrow. "Well there you have it. Not royalty, though you'd think we were with the treatment we get here sometimes."

Wilkes proceeded to pull himself out of the hatch before looking at Kincaid with a grin and a hand outstretched with fingers wiggling all the while. He did this for a few moments before extending his hand in such a way that it blocked Kincaid from reading any further.

"Ay my mans.."

"What?"

"Lemme get a muh fucking uhhh."

Kincaid simply shook his head before reaching into his cargo pocket and passing a less than full pack of cigarettes with a groan. "You know I'm running low right?"

"Well maybe if you didn't smoke like a goddamn chimney." Wilkes lit a cigarette before returning the pack and exhaling a puff of smoke. "The PX trucks should be showing up tomorrow anyways, you'll live."

"You'll just bum some more off me anyways. What the hell ever happened to your cartons?"

"Trades my mans, I always get the good shit for us."

"Yeah yeah.."

Kincaid rolled his eyes before closing the book and stuffing it back into the loader's sponson, he knew he wasn't going to get any more peace to read. He then made his way down the front of the tank, taking care not to hit a relaxing Benitez in the head before taking a seat on the side of the left fender and lighting a cigarette of his own.

No sooner had he gotten situated, an inquisitive Pollo made his way over with a skwak before resting his head in Kincaid's lap. The gunner chuckled in response before running a calloused hand over the top of the bird's head, rustling the feathers much to Pollo's content.

"Yeah yeah, I know boy. I'm ready to go take it easy too. We gotta find a place for you to crash though, you can't keep hanging around here."

Yao eyed the odd pair before raising an eyebrow. "So how did you come across this Kyckling? They're quite rare and incredibly difficult to domesticate. Seeing one here of all places..."

Wilkes let his legs dangle down off the side of the tank as he took a seat on the commander's sponson box with a loud clang, pointing at Benitez once he got situated "Yeah that'd be captain dumbass over there."

Kincaid nodded in agreement. "Yeah you gotta hear this. So we're about...maybe a week into our time being posted here at Italic-"

Hearing the infamous story being told yet again, Benitez promptly cut Kincaid off. "Ah c'mon not this story again."

"C'mon nothing. You're the one who goofed up."

"It was an honest mistake."

"You gonna let me tell the fucking story? Or do you want to?"

Benitez groaned in defeat. "Fine, go on."

"Right then." Kincaid returned to stroking Pollo's head as he continued the story. "Anyways so we'd been here for about a week, all of our stuff wasn't set up yet so we're living pretty bare bones."

Yao cocked her head to the side at the sound of the strange phrase. "'Bare bones?'"

"It's a figure of speech, means we didn't have a whole lot." Kincaid blew a cloud of smoke causing Pollo to skwak in disgust before making his way over to Benitez, at least with the driver he could relax free of smoke inhalation. Kincaid gave the bird the finger before returning his attention back to Yao.

"Anyways, so one day this travelling merchant comes walking up to the tank. Really weird looking guy too, big backpack and a wagon that he's just pushing around. So he walks up and he's like."

Parker had been polishing the horns tied to the grenade launchers on his tank next to Here We Go Again when he overheard some of the story. He hung a rag over his shoulder before laughing. "Hey Kincaid, you tellin her that story bout Pollo?!"

"Yeah!"

"Shieeeut hold up."

The muscular tank commander jumped off the front slope of his tank and made his way over. He dusted his hands off and made sure his styled haircut wasn't a mess before outstretching a hand to a confused Yao.

"Rob Parker, pleased to meet ya miss."

The elf eyed it for a few moments before looking over at his tank. "Those horns? Do they belong to a Minotaur?"

Parker glanced back at his tank before retracting his hand back and pulling his trousers up by the belt loops. "Sure do."

"Did...you kill it?"

"Sure did and a big ass evil chicken too."

Kincaid scowled, this was twice in a row he'd been interrupted. "Oh bullshit, we killed it and you ran it over."

"He was twitchin'!"

"How the fuck could you tell? We hit it with the fucking cannon bro."

Wilkes nodded in agreement. "That's facts B. And we definitely killed a helluva lot more zombies than you did too."

Parked scoffed before folding his arms. "Okay listen, everyone killed a fuck ton of those that day. Shit still gives me the creeps just thinking about it."

Yao stood there dumbstruck as the back and forth continued. Not only had these men fought a Fire Dragon and lived, they had also killed a Minotaur and what sounded like a Cockatrice too.

Yet they played it off like as if it was nothing. Legendary beasts that could slay entire scores of warriors and these men had seemingly just plowed through them.

Who were these men?

Yao finally returned her attention to the men before Kincaid broke it up. "Can I finish my story?"

"Don't let me stop you."

"Right then."

Kincaid took another drag before changing his voice to that of an old man. "'Ah noble warriors from beyond, saviors of Italica. I come to you as a humble merchant with wares that might pique the interest of men such as yourselves!'"

Yao tried to stifle back a laugh as Kincaid continued, by now other Marines had made their way over and were listening in intently.

"So we're just sitting here completely confused as to what to do next and this guy is standing there rubbing his hands like he's about to rub our balls off or something. I was about to send his creepy ass off."

The gunner pointed back at Benitez with a thumb before shaking his head. "But this doof decided that he's gonna ask him what he has anyways knowing damn well we didn't have any coins on us."

Benitez paused from petting his bird. "I was bored!"

"Dude the guy looked like he was about to set off a chest rig and blow us up."

"There aren't any explosives here."

"Tell that to the fucking wizard who chucked the Bowser fireballs at the Sir's tank."

Reeves' voice came forth from the group of Marines. "I was picking bits and pieces of shit out of the plow for days bro. Not funny."

Some of the Marines laughed as one of Reeve's crewmembers laughed. "You're a wizard 'Arry!"

"Yeah you're fucking dead Arry!"

Laughter immediately broke out amongst the platoon.

Yao's eyes widened again. They killed a sorcerer capable of fire magic too? And laughed about it?

And who was "'Arry?"

Kincaid rolled his eyes before continuing the story. "So anyways, this old guy starts rummaging through his cart. He starts pulling out all kinds of shit like sculptures and totems n' shit. At this point we're just kinda like 'whatever man keep it moving', but this guy wasn't quitting. So then he finally pulls this big ass egg out."

The gunner put his cigarette out before holding both of his hands out making an oval shape. "This big, like the size of an ostrich egg. Now for those of you who ain't ever lived in Africa and had a well cooked ostrich egg, you're missing out. You can feed like two people with that."

Yao put a hand up. "What is an Ostrich? And more importantly, where is Africa?"

Kincaid furrowed his brow. "They're a large species of bird back in our world and Africa is a big continent where you can find em. They're about as big as Pollo over there."

"Yeah and ugly as fuck too." Wilkes chimed in.

"Yeah, anyways. So it's been months since we've had a God honest egg but at the same time we weren't exactly sure where this egg came from. I mean god only know what laid it, sure as hell wasn't an ostrich unless they're running around here. But this old guy starts rambling on about how it was a magic egg and how it would grant us great strength if we cooked it..."

Yao shook her head with a sigh, she knew exactly where this was going.

Kincaid pointed at Benitez. "So before we could send him off, this dumbass starts grinning and runs up the tank. Guess what the hell he comes back down with?"

He then looked over at his driver. "Go on and tell everyone what you traded for it."

Benitez sighed. "A fucking Monster."

"No, you didn't call it that."

"Ugh. I said it was a magic strength potion."

Kincaid scoffed as the rest of the tankers laughed. "Yeah, one of my 'magic strength potions'."

The more these men talked the more confused Yao became. "You traded a monster for an egg? How does one even-"

"It's a drink."

Wilkes shook his head at Kincaid's answer. "That's no drink fam, that's cough syrup."

"Shutup, that shit's good. That's my go go juice right there."

Yao's head had began to spin. There were too many terms and references these men used that she couldn't understand. She eyed the pack of cigarettes next to Kincaid for a moment. She did understand what smoking was however and it had been quite some since she had been able to partake in smoking her favorite pipe. Her head needed it with all the emotions she was experiencing just trying to follow the story among other things.

So, she took a leap of faith.

"Kincaid?"

Kincaid raised an eyebrow at Yao's question, pausing his story for a short moment. "Yeah?"

Only for his expression to turn into one of utmost confusion as she outstretched a hand with her fingers wiggling. "Lemon me get a muh fuckeeng uhh.."

In seconds the entire platoon burst into laughter at Yao's mimicking of what Wilkes had said earlier, leaving the elf standing there completely confused as to what it was she had done. Her pointed ears twitched up as she began to look around.

"I don't understand, I thought that was how you asked for tobacco?"

Kincaid thumped his chest a few times as he coughed. Once he was settled down he chuckled before reaching for the pack and offering it. "What you you want a cigarette? Why didn't you just ask normally? That was just Wilkes being stupid."

Yao eyed the strange green colored pack before plucking one of the cigarettes out and eyeing it suspiciously. It was awfully small and no doubt didn't contain much in the way of tobacco, but beggars couldn't be choosers. Before she put it into her mouth Kincaid pointed at his old cigarette butt.

"Hey press down right here, you should feel a click."

Yao promptly did as she was told, sure enough she felt a click. Once she put the cigarette into her lips she saw a flame out of the corner of her eye, Parker's hand holding up a small rectangular silver object that was producing it.

They had mastered the art of conjuring fire too without using magic or flint.

"Ma'am allow me."

Yao nodded as the flame slowly lit the end of her cigarette. She gave it a few puffs before allowing the smoke to enter her mouth, her eyes quickly widening in short order. The smoke was cool, and felt almost refreshing. She quickly let out a cloud of smoke before taking another drag, much to the amusement of the tankers.

Kincaid another one of his own before nodding. "Yeah, that's the good shit. The good American shit."

Parker nodded before light one of his own and clacking his Zippo shut. "Yeah, congratulations Miss Yao you just took your first step on the road towards embracing America. You ain't the first though, sure as shit won't be the last either. Sorry your first smoke had to be a pussy ass menthol though."

Kincaid glared at Parker. "Man shut the hell up, maybe I don't like the taste of ass."

"That's a fuck ass lie and you know it."

"Don't you dare bring that up."

"Hey I ain't knocking it, you know how I roll."

Yao took another drag and let a long stream of smoke out. "This is unlike anything I've ever had before. You said it was called a Men-tol?"

Wilkes nodded. "Yeah, that's a type of cigarette. Very very common in our world. They're meant to be portable and take anywhere, not everyone's got time for a pipe you know?"

Yao took another drag before sighing as she quickly felt herself relaxing. Once she was done savoring the moment she glanced back at Kincaid. "So you were saying?"

Kincaid scoffed. "Yeah long story short the egg hatched when we almost cooked it and out popped the bird."

Benitez ruffled Pollo's feathers some more. "Yeah he was a little chick when we first had him. Sometimes I'd put him in my lap when we'd take the tank out, I couldn't just leave him here. Of course he eventually grew way too big way too fast for that."

Yao shook her head. "Many a trader had tricked a client with tricks such as that."

"Yeah well with all the weird things we've seen here I guess part of us kinda went with the flow."

The elf chuckled in response to this statement, it did have some sense of sound reasoning.

"Alright, when ya'll are done messing around form a school circle!"

Yao paused at the sound of Aldritch's voice, almost bracing herself as every Marine present rushed over to him and three other men as they began to take knees or stand in a circle. Pollo took his place behind most of the men, his long neck easily stretching up and over the Marines to get a good look at things.

Yao easily deduced that two of the men accompanying Aldritch were also his subordinates, they were wearing the same uniforms after all. The last one wore a garb completely different than anything she had seen before, a black button up shirt over khaki colored pants with pockets all over them. At a glance she had mistaken this last individual for one of the Japanese troops she had seen earlier, but he lacked some of the same distinct features.

Perhaps he was from a country near Japan? A different offshoot of the same race? This sort of thing wasn't unheard of, even in Falmart.

Unsure of what else to do Yao made her way over to the group and stood off to the side as Aldritch addressed his men.

"Alright, one, we good? Tank topped off and put to bed?"

All of Aldritch's crew gave thumbs up.

"Alright. Two, you good?"

Sergeant Johnson glanced at his crew at Aldritch's question, his concerns immediately put to rest as his crew mirrored one's gesture. Aldritch nodded in response.

"Good shit. Three, how you looking?"

Parker gave a thumbs up. "All good to go sir, you know we're good for it."

"Good, good. Four?"

Elton folded his arms. "We're good sir, I know my guys."

The Chinese American civilian mirrored Elton's gesture as he eyed Here We Go Again. As an employee of General Dynamics he was naturally more concerned than most when it came down to the topic of that tank.

Kenny Zhang, the recent acting FSR ***** for the platoon.

Many of his superiors had thought the composite armor layers had been compromised following the dragon attack. Having depleted uranium armor exposed was a big no no even if everyone was smart enough not to lick it or go digging their fingers in it. There was also the matter of OPSEC, medieval world or not there had never been an instance in which the depleted uranium armored layers up front had ever been penetrated by hostile action. Their concerns put to rest or not, they still made sure to keep an eye on that tank.

The FSR's voice was deep enough to even make Yao's head turn, even if she couldn't understand what was being said. In truth, Zhang's voice had always thrown the Marines for a loop. The man just sounded perpetually angry, which probably wasn't too far from the truth given his job.

"You guys feeling alright? Nothing crazy's been going on with the tank right?"

Kincaid chuckled. "No worries Mister Zhang, she's in tip top condition. Nobody's dick is falling off from DU illness or anything."

The entire platoon laughed at that remark. Everyone who had worked on the tanks long enough knew that cancer related to the tanks' armor or firing service SABOT was incredibly uncommon. The material wasn't harmful unless ingested in large quantities and even then that wasn't possible unless the front armor was penetrated or one started licking the ammunition.

The former would mean you were probably already dead, the latter was just stupidity.

Zhang rolled his eyes from under his heavy framed glasses. "Real funny, like I haven't heard that one before." He then shook his head before looking over the rest of the platoon.

"How about the rest of you boys? Liking them new APUs and CROWS systems? You know how many goddamn hoops I had to jump through getting those parts here? You're the first A1s to get retrofitted like that, damn well better be taking good car-"

Aldritch coughed loudly before Zhang could continue.

"Ah, sorry sir."

Aldritch gave the man a pat on the shoulder. "No worries, believe me we all appreciate the new toys."

The captain then glanced at the crew for the M88. The same one that Yao had no idea even existed on account of their vehicle being parked away from the tanks. As ever, nobody had paid them any mind since nothing was broken.

Fine by the mechanics, they liked things quiet.

Muldoon ran a finger across his mustache as the rest of his dirty looking crew remained quiet.

"We're all good, nothing too crazy. Just had to swap out some track pads, other besides that the platoon is up as far as maintenance goes. Haven't seen tanks this squared away in a long time."

The sergeant then proceeded to stomp his foot on the ground, the rest of the platoon doing the same. There wasn't any wood to knock on for that jinx. Pollo on the other hand thought it was some sort of game promptly stomping his feet on the ground until the platoon calmed him down.

"Alright, good shit across the board." Aldritch began to pace back and forth. "So I know it's been a few hours since we got back from the Jade Palace but I wanted to go ahead and congratulate you all on yet another job well done."

A series of "Errs" rang out in response as the captain continued.

"I understand that this deployment has demanded a lot out of you. Hell I won't lie, it's demanded a lot out of me too. For most of us here this is our first deployment, hell of a one sided ass kicking but that's just the way it is. Doesn't make this mission any less important. Every thing you do here has an effect on both friend and foe alike and probably more than it ever could have done back in deployments past. I know I've beat this dead horse a million times but it's for a good reason."

Aldritch stopped pacing as he looked over each and every man in his platoon. He knew them all personally by now; names, personalities, likes and dislikes. They had been working together for so long, more importantly it was his job as their platoon commander to see them to mission and bring them all back alive.

"I am proud of each and every one of you. You were thrust into a mission you hadn't expected,one any of us had expected, and have been performing above and beyond from the very beginning all the way to now."

The captain started counting off on each finger. "Overwatch, assaults, defenses, presence patrols, QRF *****. You've carried out these missions anytime and anywhere and against things ripped straight out of fantasy books. Hell you've even had to do ad hoc hearts and minds missions like what we just did earlier. Not our primary job as tankers, but hey Semper Gumby right? Always flexible, that's what Marines do. Any clime and place too."

The platoon remained quiet a few of the man had put their arms around each other's shoulders by now. Sometimes words weren't necessary to convey feelings and the platoon had experienced much in that regard. Sleepless nights on missions or fixing tanks, uncertainty over the next mission or enemy. Stress from back home, the pain of being away from loved ones and having to deal with the slow mail system. Some of the Aldritch's Marines were married men too as well as became new fathers during their deployment. Then there were some who had experienced divorce or just breakups in general.

The Corps was no stranger to these hardships, but that didn't make it any easier. That's why Aldritch always ensured to bring his men together like this every day if possible.

"So once again let me go ahead and say outstanding job, I couldn't ask for a finer group of Marines to lead."

More "Errs" in response.

"But don't slack up yet. We still have a ways to go and no doubt there's a lot of jaw jammering going on with the powers that be. This campaign isn't over until Molt Sol Augustus and anyone else in power are taken off their high horse and behind bars." The captain then lowered his voice. "Though truthfully, seeing a nice fat JDAM get dropped on them wouldn't be so bad either, long as they leave some for us."

Laughter from the platoon.

Aldritch reached into the cargo pocket for his trousers, taking out a small notepad and flipping some pages for a few seconds.

"Anyways, I got some word. Mail will be coming in tomorrow along with the PX trucks."

He stopped for a moment, raising an eyebrow at his platoon. "You know the rules with that. I know some of you have a sweet thing back home sending you the good eye candy but your filthy peckers can wait. They'll bring it to us when they've got it sorted. As for the trucks, we always get first dibs anyways since they come through our gate anyways."

Aldritch's face twisted into a glare as he flipped a page. "On the topic of peckers, stop goddamn buying the condoms from the trucks. I don't care if the Japanese trucks are selling em if they want to go balls deep into an ork that's on them. We're here on a mission not to play fantasy fuck fuck games."

The rest of the Marines gave embarrassed looks, a few snickering while making all sorts of lewd noises. The irony here was that everyone in the platoon knew that Aldritch had a radio in his room that had a line directly with Pina. Evidently someone had caught onto their developing friendship and at the Princess' request granted her the opportunity to be able to talk to him whenever she so chose. This was probably done in hopes she would slip him valuable intel she otherwise wouldn't immediately share with anyone else.

Instead all it had done was keep the poor Captain up at odd hours of the night. Seeing his platoon make light of the situation, Aldritch's glare intensified.

"Real fucking funny rah? They already had to send some guys back for some weird shit they contracted. Shit's no joke, don't fuck the locals If I catch you your ass is gonna be in a sling."

 _Not like that'll matter. You assholes always find a fucking way. Goddamn Marines._

Wilkes raised a hand. "Sir you said they caught shit? Was that because they were, you know?"

"I don't know Wilkes, they probably weren't. Doesn't matter regardless because you won't be doing that shit."

"Err."

Wilkes mumbled under his breath loud enough for other Marines nearby to hear em. "Good thing I'm only getting Japanese Yams ya mean?"

The other Marines snickered before Aldritch began tapping his boot. "Something you want to say Lance Corporal Wilkes?"

"No sir."

"Very well." Aldritch returned to his book, flipping another page.

"Since we're still on the topic. The Water dogs* have informed me the showers near our area are back up so make sure you're washing your filthy bodies."

A few fist pumps and shouts of jubilation came from the platoon. Nobody enjoyed being dirty and smelling like crap if they could help it.

Aldritch finally closed his book and rubbed his eyes. "Alright well that's it. Guard duty is the same as always. Anyone got anything for me?"

The rest of the platoon shook their heads before a familiar young girl's voice cut through the silence.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do."

A pit began to form in Aldritch's stomach. There was only one girl in Italica who would visit his platoon at an odd time such as this and wherever she went she always brought a crowd with her.

Countess Myui, a quick glance at the throng of bodyguards surrounding her and an accompanying Joyce both coalition and Maid alike only intensifying the feeling.

"I do hope we aren't interrupting anything Captain Aldritch, but I figured tonight was as good a night as any for this."

Aldritch and his men noticed the carts and UGRs ***** behind the large group. They knew exactly what this was, another one of the Countess' impromptu social gatherings. Aldritch took a step forward before smiling as warmly as he could.

"Of course not Ma'am we were just wrapping up some talks."

 _It's not like we want to sleep, do our own thing, shower, relax. Oh no by all means please bring the fucking circus here including the brass. Maybe we'll have another bonfire with the whole town converging on us again._

Aldritch's gaze went towards Joyce the Major returning a look that spoke volumes all of its own.

"I'm sorry, she was absolutely adamant about this but you'll get this hell over it because I have more rank than you."

The Countess clapped her hands together with a smile. "Splendid! It's been quite some time since we were able to have a get together like this. I figured it would be more fitting to have it here, we do have a new guest to our home after all."

She pointed at Yao, the confused Dark Elf merely standing there with wide eyes at all of this. "She has come here during dark times seeking aid and comfort, let us show her the sort that only Italica and its brave defenders can provide."

Yao stood there dumbstruck for a few moments more before bowing as she did her best to maintain her composure. "I..t-thank you."

"Speak nothing of it, your timing coincided with this. It's good fortune."

"Yes..quite."

The countess clapped her hands together once more. "Well then, let us get this place set up then!"

In moments troops and maids were all over the place as they began setting out tables and chairs leaving Yao standing there still absolutely stunned. These troops were even on good terms with Italica's ruling body?

"I told you we get treated well around here."

Yao snapped back to attention as Kincaid called out to her. The marine quickly made his way past her with one of the maids as they carried a strange box. What made the sight all the stranger was two minor details Yao had quickly noticed.

One, the maid in question was Medusa and not under any sort of duress. This was virtually unheard of anywhere else. Secondly, the placement of both Kincaid and her hands couldn't have been any more blatant.

Their fingers were locked, they were holding hands.

The troops had become so intertwined with the people here that they had started developing relationships with them too.

"What's the matter? You look absolutely flabbergasted."

Yao turned to face the new voice, only for her blood to freeze.

It was Rory Mercury, the apostle of Emroy. The Coalition had allied itself with a harbinger of Emroy.

Rory smiled. "Like you've seen a ghost."

* * *

 _Meanwhile.._

 **OUTPOST GOMMORAH**

Outside of the Special Forces outpost, a scene had begun to develop. With a frantic voice and a series of thuds at the front door.

"You don't understand! I need to talk to Lieutenant Recker now!"

"What's the password?"

Silence for a few moments.

"I-I'm new here, ask Mizari - she can vouch for me!"

"Mizari ain't here, look whatever it is you can tell me."

Suddenly Mizari's voice cut both the operator and the new guest off. "Oh no, I'm here and the password is 'The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday'". There was more silence followed by some laughs and a muffled voice.

"Seriously? That's the password? Who the fuck's idea was that?"

"Just open the fucking door."

No sooner had the door opened the outpost was swarmed by multiple prostitutes of varying species sizes and ages causing an entire outposts worth of operators to immediately grab their weapons.

No well trained soldier enjoyed things going to hell in a handbasket that fast.

"WHOAH WHOAH BACK UP! BACK THE HELL UP!" Operators both Japanese and American tried to maintain order as a disgruntled sleep deprived Recker made his way downstairs. Upon seeing the scene his eyes immediately went wide as he hovered his hand over his sidearm.

"Okay, what the fuck's going on? And who the hell upped and decided we were gonna let the whole Red Light District in? Would've been up shit's creek without a fucking paddle if that was the enemy."

All of the operators looked around, nobody wanting to fess up for the ball being dropped.

"Right, I'll find out." The Lieutenant then glared at Mizari. "Alright, so this had better be good. What's going on?"

The winged woman looked at her cohorts for a moment before a smaller girl stepped forward. She was a lot more avian than Mizard could ever be, her winged arms and avian feet distinguishing her as a Harpy.

"This girl, Tyuuwari." Mizari put a hand on each of her shoulder. "She has reason to believe something bad is coming our way."

All of the operators went ramrod straight at this statement, more than a few of them readying weapons and making their way to windows.

Recker raised an eyebrow. "Define 'something bad'. Troops? Magicians? The Emperor? Who?"

The Harpy put her hands together before shaking her head. "I-I do not know. I just feel like something terrible is coming and that we all need to leave."

Mizari nodded her head in agreement. "Tyuuwari is often not wrong about these sort of things. She has a sort of clairvoyance."

"Well that's great and all, but without specifics I can't do anything. Certainly can't be telling other units 'Something wicked this way comes'. Whatever it is we'll double our shifts and-"

"Boss we got fuckin' a problem!"

One of the SEALS looked away from sighting down his scope, looking back over his shoulder at Recker. "Got multiple contacts coming this way, armed too."

"Bullshit." Recker looked at one of their drone feeds on the table. Sure enough there was a large gathering taking shape outside of the building, it looked like an incoherent mass of thermal blobs.

As operators began to take up their positions behind barricades and windows, Recker shot glare at Mizari and her cohorts. "Did you fucking sell us out?"

Mizari took a step forward. "No! None of us did. We honor our agreements Recker you know that."

"Do I?"

"Boss, I got an ID on one of the foot mobiles. It's fucking Bessara sir."

Recker started gearing up, slinging his carbine as he made his way over towards one of the windows. "Bullshit, he's our bitch."

As he sighted down the thermal scope for his weapon sure enough he saw the crime boss. The bearded portly man was hardly difficult to miss.

"That motherfucking two timing bastard..."

Recker looked back over his shoulder at one of his men. "Thomas, let Alnus main know what's going on." He then looked at the rest of his men. "The rest of you, you know what to do. Try to keep that asshole alive too-"

Suddenly Bessara's harsh and raspy voice cut the Lieutenant off.

"Anyone home?! Surely you have time for some of your old friends!"

"That fucking bitch." Recker knocked the glass out of his window before yelling back. "Bessara! That you?! Funny, I don't recall scheduling a fucking appointment!"

The crime boss outstretched his arms as the rest of his fellows laughed. "Ah I'm just stopping by with some friends! We have some information to share!"

"Really? Is that why you're all fucking armed?!"

"You can never be too careful these days!"

Recker sighted in on Bessara as he continued to yell. "Really? Cause it sounds an awful lot like you're here for a fight."

"That's possible! There's a lot of money going out for your heads, apparently the Emperor himself wants someone to bring an end to the 'Shadow Warriors'! Funny name, no?! I heard you've got your hands on some sweet tail too!"

By now the prostitutes had began to huddle in a corner of the room, a few of the operators standing guard. Recker called back as he continued to sight in on the group.

"Relax...we're not gonna let em touch you." He then started to yell back to Bessara. "I don't think you understand the sort of shitstorm you just kicked off! We don't fucking take kindly to double crossers!"

The entire group began to laugh as Bessara took a step forward. "Double crossers!? We're _**gangsters**_ , we don't have an honor code!"

"Bessara, I'm gonna be really fucking courteous to you one last time. You tell your buddies to leave and they might just live another day."

"And if I don't!?"

"Then they're all going to _ **fucking die**_. Either way your ass is _**mine** _ no matter what option you take."

Bessara laughed. "Doesn't seem like a good deal to me!

"You don't rate fuckin' shit!"

There was silence for a few moments, both sides unmoving. Suddenly Bessara snapped his fingers.

"Nah!"

Suddenly the entire group charged forward.

"Fine then!"

They hadn't even made it halfway towards the building before the explosives detonated and the bodies began piling.

* * *

So, work has already begun on the next chapter to make up for my terrible lack of an update these past few months. Also if you've noticed I added stars to certain words. Starting now I'll be providing definitions whenever I use words civilians may or may not know. I'll also be going back to add this to previous chapters so thanks to the reader who offered the suggestion.

Anyways, the ball is rolling now ladies and gentlemen. Let's keep on keeping on and I'll see YOU in the next chapter.

Also yes, there's a page in the manga (the filler chapter with the wolf guy moving doing his thing) that has a Chocobo in it.

* * *

 **Jargon**

Divestment-When a Company gets disbanded.

FSR-Field Service Representative. Always available both on deployment and in garrison whenever equipment needs the highest echelons of service.

QRF-Quick Reaction Force. These guys have to be ready to move out on a moment's notice. Anyone can be placed on QRF and it'll change based on mission and deployment.

Water Dogs-Term used to describe Marines who handle the water side of logistics. Field showers, all of that shit.


	29. In Remembrance(Filler)

**In Remembrance of Those Who Boldly Walked Before**

" _On this day, we must tell the stories of those who fought and died in freedom's cause. We must tell their stories because those who've lost loved ones need to know that a grateful Nation will always remember. We must tell their stories so that our children and grandchildren will understand what our lives might have been like had it not been for their sacrifice._ "

George H.W. Bush

 _Months before the events of Ginza_

 **MAY 29TH 20150900 HOURS ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, VIRGINIA**

It was as beautiful a day as ever, another instance of stark contrast compared to the last few grim months of lingering post-winter weather the state was starting to become well known for. The sun shone high above casting a warm glow on the acres of carefully cut grass, the well tended trees that jutted up and over sloping hills of green. Things were mostly quiet here, the only sounds coming from a light breeze whistling throughout the area and birds chirping merrily.

This was a tranquil place, a fitting resting place for those who had died in service to the nation. Kincaid took a deep breath before rolling the sleeves up for his tank school hoodie and fidgeting with his wrist band. No matter how many times he had done this, it never got easier. Justifiably so, considering there was someone he had to visit.

An old friend and brother in arms.

Here we go again.

Kincaid slowly set off, walking between rows of white tombstones in a path he had taken many times before. As he twisted and winded between rows, he did his best to be as quiet and unnoticeable as possible.

There were plenty of other visitors there, after all. Not a surprise, considering the nature of this particular day and the many generations of brave men and women who had put the uniform on. Men and women cut from the same piece of cloth Kincaid came from.

Army, Marines, Air Force, Navy, all of the branches had their share of honored dead here and each no more or less plentiful than any other. Most of them had participated in some way throughout the wars or conflicts the United States was involved in.

Kincaid took a few more turns, occasionally nodding his head as he acknowledged other veterans, both old and young, and families who recognized the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor on the back of his hoodie. They were all here for the same reason after all: to pay their respects to those who had fallen, both their own and otherwise.

After a few more turns, Kincaid finally found the tombstone he had been looking for, nestled in the shade under a small tree. It looked the same as every other there, but as Kincaid took a knee and ran a hand over its engraving, he felt his heart twist. It wasn't the same at all.

* * *

 **JAMES RAYMOND**

 **CORPORAL**

 **US MARINES**

 **AFGHANISTAN**

 **JUNE 31ST 1986**

 **OCTOBER 24 2013**

 **OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM**

* * *

Kincaid winced as he slowly crossed his legs and took a seat in front of the tombstone before reaching into his cargo shorts' pockets, pulling out a small beer can from each. He popped the tabs on both before setting one down next to the tombstone.

"Hey man, it's me again. I, uh, brought your favorite." He twisted the can around so that its label faced the engraving.

Budweiser.

Kincaid took a swig from his can before sighing. "Never knew how you could stomach this crap. Hell, how any of us can stomach this crap? But hey, it's cheap, isn't it? And that's what we like when we drink at the bricks *****."

Silence for a few moments, but that was fine. Doing this still felt right. It always did.

"So, everyone's doing alright. Most of our guys are out now. It's just me, Wilkes, Elton and a handful of other guys from Delta. Wilkes, Elton and I are in Charlie company now."

Kincaid paused before taking another swig. "Well, what's left of Charlie. Our platoon is the only one still back at Lejeune. The other two are all formed up for Black Sea Rotations and off doing their own shit. They gotta go over and play spooky games off in Eastern Europe, Russia's been acting up near Ukraine and took Crimea. It's all a bunch of messy politics and Eastern European bullshit if you ask me, but whatever. Our place is just getting the job done not trying to figure out what makes Putin or anyone like him tick."

He took another swig. "Anyways like I was saying, most of our guys are out now but there's still a few left. Most of them are with Alpha and Bravo now."

Kincaid chuckled. "Poor bastards had to get sent to the shit companies, but the Battalion is starting to downsize, so what can ya do, huh? Shit, you remember last year when I stopped by, Delta's already gone now. Charlie's next and after that it's just gonna be Alpha and Bravo. Which is why what I'm about to tell you next is gonna blow your fucking mind, man."

Another swig.

"Bro, we're going to Japan in a few months. We're taking fucking tanks to Japan!"

Kincaid went silent for a few moments, expecting a response he wouldn't hear.

"Right? What's crazier is that we're sending fucking headquarters platoon to go do it. Out of all the able bodies to send, it just had to be us, huh? And during my last fucking year in too! So much for a quiet last year of doing nothing, huh? Doesn't make any goddamn sense."

Kincaid smacked the back of his head with a smile. "Ah, sorry. There I go bitching again. You know me though, even with all the times you used to get on my ass about it." He laughed before taking another sip.

"Remember how you used to get on my ass about MCMAP ***** while we were in Afghanistan? Always wanted Wilkes and I to belt up so we'd look good for promotion. You used to drag him and I off the laptop and make us go to the makeshift dojo behind the hooch*. That shit was ass, man, making us get all fucked up on the mat in the blistering heat."

Kincaid sighed, thinking about the bruises and welts he received. For a moment, he could almost feel the Afghan sun and dirt fouling him up again. He quickly shook the thought before feeling a darkness begin to creep. He was here to visit an old friend, not break down into tears.

He had done that plenty of times already.

"But, we sure as hell belted up. I almost got pissed when you said you wanted us to try for brown after we had just got to green. The deal was to only get to green, you know?"

Kincaid finished the last of his beer before setting the can down and arching his back with a series of satisfying cracks.

"Anyways, Japan. You know I started getting into anime and shit. Maybe I might be able to get some sweet merchandise." Kincaid quickly put his hands up. "No no, it's not that bad. I'm not that far gone yet."

He scowled. "Look man, just because I dated a stripper for a few days doesn't mean anything either. It's just nerd shit, I swear."

Kincaid paused before remembering all the times Raymond used to chastise him and Wilkes for the bizarre and absolutely foul things they were known for before chuckling.

"Okay, so maybe I am that far gone. I ain't a loser a though. You know Wilkes would kick my ass if I went off the deep end."

 _Not that I haven't already gone through months of having to seek professional help, but you don't need to know that._

"Anyways man, hopefully this is the last big thing I have to do. Just go over there and train with the Japanese, do some tank shit and I'll be back before I know it and getting ready to EAS. _**Simple right?**_ "

Kincaid sat there for a few moments before thinking about all the field ops he had ever done, all the garrison games he had to play back at the tank ramp with the other Marines. He then shook his head.

"Nah, it won't be simple, will it? Man, you remember how I always complained about those gut feelings I get. Something tells me something **_stupid_** is gonna happen, you know how shit goes with tanks." He sighed. "How shit in the Corps goes period, but that's our lot in life right?"

Silence again, the only sounds coming from the whistling wind and birds. Kincaid looked at his watch before sighing.

"Anyways man I won't keep you. Besides, I gotta drive back to Lejeune tomorrow. You know how much an ass pain that drive is. Fucking six hours." He looked at the tombstone for a few moments before wrapping his arms around it, tears beginning to slide off his cheek and onto the warm stone.

"I miss you man, every fucking day. No matter how good we did over there, losing you tore all of that down."

Kincaid let go of the stone as he pulled himself together, slowly getting up and standing over it. "I'm not the only one either. Wilkes grieves in his own way. Hell, all of the guys do."

He smiled before putting his hand on the stone. "But through that pain, man, I think we got stronger too. No, I know we did. I know I sure as fuck did. Some things just take time. Some more than others." Kincaid rubbed his eyes before ensuring his can was set next to Raymonds. "Anyways, enjoy your beer, man. It was good seeing you and I'll be sure to stop by again when I get back from Japan. I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories to tell."

Kincaid took a deep breath before starting to walk away. He only made it a few steps forward before stopping. "Oh yeah, we got a new guy in our crew, by the way. He's a boot but I think he's gonna do good work. Something tells me this trip to Japan is gonna turn him into a damn good tanker."

He paused once again waiting for a response he knew he wouldn't get.

"Anyways man, take it easy. It was good to talk to you."

With that, Kincaid made his way back through the cemetery and towards the metro station. He walked slowly, taking the time to appreciate the place for what it was and what it meant to someone like him. He'd seen death before and little did he know, he was going to see a lot more of it very soon. Another test that would bring back these same memories.

He stopped once more before turning around to get one last look at the cemetery.

"Rest well, brothers and sisters. There's no greater honor than carrying on your legacies."

With that, Kincaid left.

* * *

 **I felt like this was something I had to do, lord knows I've done "filler" chapters for most of the major holidays that have come and gone.**

 **The truth of it is this, right now there's someone probably having a conversation much like this over at Arlington. Be it a service member or family member, someone is over there paying their respects. Most of you who have talked to me know what kind of person I am and how I feel about my time in the Marines and the caliber of men and women who enlist in any of our branches.**

 **You can twist your conspiracy theories, you can twist your political bull shit about the wars we've been in but at the end of the day some young man or woman wanted to do something different. They put that uniform on wanting to challenge themselves or because they believed in something greater. A great deal many of these people died in countries many of these critics can't even fucking find on a map and doing shit these same critics feel there's a better way of doing.**

 **Or just flat out don't have the balls to do period.**

 **To enlist in today's U.S. armed forces is to do so against great controversy and during a period in which our nation is greatly divided in what it views as "right" and "wrong". But that's never been what enlisting is about and that's not what this story is about which was this chapter had to be done much like the Marine Corps Birthday chapter.**

 **It's about personal strength, believing in something and overcoming all odds in search of finding one's self. These are things you can't quantify with controversy or theories or any of that bullshit. So on this day of days I honor our nation's fallen with this chapter and with pride of knowing that I was able to serve behind them or maybe even alongside them.**

 **May this caliber of individual never disappear and may our nation's future battles continue to be fought and won with this same caliber of men and women. And to my readers who have told me about their future enlistment and how this story has touched them, may you too walk with pride and honor knowing you carry on the legacy of giants.**

 **Happy Memorial's day.**

 **Yeah I'm still working on the old chapters lol.**

* * *

 **Jargon**

Bricks: Barracks

Hooch: Another word for tent, also sometimes used to describe buildings being used as housing.

MCMAP: Marine Corps Martial Arts Program, hand to hand bullshit and all that jazz.


	30. Chaos

**Ok ok, I know.**

 **"YOU SAID END OF THE WEEKEND."**

 **Yeah well I didn't anticipate my internet acting all fucky either. TLDR I won't be making promises like that anymore lest I get burned by the torches and stabbed by the pitchforks.**

 **Anyways it's good to be back boys and girls. I'm not gonna fill this spot up with a bunch of sentimental bull shit over why it's been so long, ya'll know where to reach me.**

 **Off we go.**

* * *

 **Chapter 27: Chaos**

 _"Whatever the job is, we can do it. That's why the nation has a Marine Corps."_

James F. Amos Thirty-Fifth Commandant of the Marine Corps

 **1930 HOURS, AKUSHO DISTRICT, OUTPOST GOMORRAH**

For something so one sided, the firefight was dragging on a lot longer than it should have. Gangsters of all species shapes and sizes scrambled around like ants from an overturned anthill as they were cut down. The ones who tried to run to or from the whore house never made it far before disappearing in an explosion or being torn apart by invisible projectiles.

Those brave enough to try and draw bows were singled out almost immediately, their bodies having trouble recognizing they were dead long after neat holes were drilled into their skulls.

Not even the armored ogre they had hired fared any better. In fact he was the first one to die, the dim witted creature had stepped on a clearly visible square like object. The first blast had removed one of his legs, the following hail of projectiles pushed him off balance and into another explosion had sealed his fate.

There was no way the Empire was getting involved in this either even with all the commotion. They were the reason the gangsters were there in the first place.

Bessara continued to take cover behind an abandoned cart as the sounds of weaponry, explosions and bodies hitting the cobblestone roads continued. The crime lord kept his hands over his head, his eyes glued shut all the while.

For a moment he was almost thankful nobody in the other gangs would probably live through this ordeal to recount the image of him cowering like a child.

How could they have been so stupid? How could they have possibly thought they would succeed where even well trained Imperial soldiers and talented mages hadn't?

Bessara already knew the answer to his own question: money. A terrible plan that had backfired in the worst way possible did the rest.

The Empire had recently put an enormous standing bounty on anyone who was a member of the so called "Coalition"- double what its enemy was offering those who aided its cause instead.

Triple if the adventurous assassin or mercenary could bring back a functioning piece of their otherworldly gear. The only problem was not a lot of individuals had the wit or stones necessary to try and fulfill such a bounty and there was good reason for this too. There was no real way to get the drop on the enemy. They occupied massive fortresses, could strike day or night from a range incomprehensible to the naked eye and had the ability to see through most disguises and tricks.

Like as if they had experienced it before.

No, the only potential way to even have a hope of a chance of striking them would be betrayal or underhanded tactics. For all their martial prowess, they were still human and had a sense of morality never before seen in any of the militaries of Falmart. The coalition would never hurt innocents and would only fire out of self defense when all other options had been exhausted.

They also had a habit of taking any help they could get. Translators, diplomats, trackers. Anyone who knew the world and its customs better than them was considered valuable in their eyes, this meant they could potentially be attacked from the inside.

Which is precisely what Bessara and the other gangs had thought they could pull off against their former employers. They had the numerical advantage and knew the area better than them. Greed and copious amounts of drug filled gangsters filled the rest of the gaps in the plan.

What the gangsters hadn't realized was the fact that not every group of soldiers in the coalition were the same. The men fighting from within the building and cutting down so many of Bessara's fellows didn't play by conventional rules. In fact, Bessara and the other gangsters knew very little about them outside of a few names they often used during deals. Not that it ever bothered them too much when the pay was alright for the risky inside jobs they were often given.

Just not as good as what the Empire had offered and if there was one thing motivating all the scores of men dying in the courtyard it was money.

Bessara opened his eyes for a moment as a thought entered his mind. Throughout the entirety of the massacre not once had a single round even came close to hitting him. He knew there was no way the cart could stop the firepower the warriors could bring to bare, the troll's death had confirmed that. Their fire had been so accurate that anyone that even came within arms reach of Bessara died before they could say or do anything.

Which only confirmed one thing - he was being kept alive on purpose he was the mastermind behind this operation afterall. It only made sense to keep him alive for whatever terrible punishment they had cooked up.

The crime boss couldn't help but almost feel a pang of regret too. As great as this betrayal was his plan was never to stick around for much longer and use the wealth he so desperately sought in Sadera.

As wrong as it was, as inexcusable as it was, he was still a family man. He had a wife, daughter, and even a few servants he took decent care of. Bessara had always considered himself a cut above other crime bosses in this regard. His ill earned money being put into his family and influence.

Not that they ever knew; that was shame even he considered below his current betrayal. With all the change being brought about by the current war and the impressively high bounty being put out, Bessara saw an opportunity to leave Sadera once and for all. A chance to use his new wealth to leave and make a name for himself somewhere far away from the war and in a place a little less risky for his family.

Bessara almost chuckled at that thought, at the foolishness of what he had done even as the killing finally stopped.

Recker and his men had guaranteed his family's safety for cooperating with them.

The crime boss sat there as the smell of death and chipped masonry began to fill his nostrils over the deathly quiet. Suddenly he heard the sound of a door slowly being opened and leather boots pattering over stone.

"Bessara, get the fuck out here you double crossing son of a bitch."

The crime boss slowly rose to his feet and made his way around the cart with his hands in the air as he turned to face Recker and the other soldiers. He almost paused for a moment as this was the first time he had ever seen them face to face, their features were usually hidden behind strange masks.

The thick bearded man in front that Bessara assumed to be Recker looked at two of his men and muttered something. In seconds they both made their way over to the crime lord and restrained him with a thick cord around his wrists before setting him down on his knees.

Recker then made his way over as the rest of the soldiers began checking the bodies of gangsters to ensure they were dead. He looked down at the defeated crime boss before chuckling. "It's funny, you know? We had actually started taking bets over how long it'd take before you guys would try to pull some shit like this. We planned for this the moment we contacted you."

He shook his head. "For what it's worth you actually kept to your word a lot longer than we had expected. Hell, even longer than some of the other scumbags we've worked with before."

Bessara sat there in shamed silence as the SEAL continued.

"So." Recker lit a cigarette and took a few puffs before letting out a cloud of smoke and looking around at the scene of carnage. "That's a hell of a lot of dead guys you got there Bessara. How many did you get together for this? All of them?."

Recker nodded as he answered his own question. "Probably, hard guys to replace too I'm guessing. You know the other bosses are gonna be real pissed when they find out you fucked up."

He then whistled as he shook his head. "Yeah I reckon you really fucked up big time here man. They probably told you your ass was as good as dead if you mucked this up didn't they?"

Bessara simply nodded.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better they'll be joining these guys soon enough, but lets cut to the chase."

Recker took a knee and adjusted himself so that he was eye to eye with the crime lord. "Did you really think this was going to work?"

Silence.

"Check it out, I'm gonna be blunt. You've got probably-" Recker paused to look at his watch. "I'd say twenty minutes before word gets back to your buddies about your fuck up here. You know what that means right?"

Bessara's eyes went wide as a feeling of dread crept into his mind.

"Please-"

Recker wagged a finger as his volume increased. "Ohhh no, that bird has flown buddy. You're not in any position to barter or make deals of any kind right now. You didn't honor your end of our deal so there's no reason for us to honor ours. Right Katsumoto?"

The Japanese officer had just finished eyeing an ornate dagger he had picked off one of the gangsters. At the sound of Recker's question he sheathed it and buckled the blade to his plate carrier before shrugging. "Deal? I don't remember making any deals."

"Well there you have it." Recker let out another cloud of smoke with a look of indifference at Bessara's now terrified face. "You don't even exist right now, but I'll tell you what. Far as I'm concerned your family still does and the only reason I give a fuck is because it ain't right for them to have to suffer any longer cause of your dishonest ass."

The crime lord sighed in relief. He'd take any small victory he could at this point. "Thank you-"

"Shutup. Before I send any of my men out into the shit you've got some talking to do." Recker eyed his watch again. "You're down to fifteen minutes."

"Okay okay! I'll talk." Bessara sighed. "It-"

Recker shook his head. "Not out here dumbass."

Suddenly the sound of a yelp followed by a loud snap caught the attention of both men and everyone else in the courtyard. One of the gangsters had tried to play dead only to receive a shot in the back of the head upon thinking it was safe to move.

"Yeah, not out here." Recker shook his head. "Can we get some guys to get these bodies out of the way?"

A couple of SEALs nodded as they assisted some Japanese in moving the corpses someplace inconspicuous. The last thing they needed was drawing anymore attention to themselves.

Or the smell.

As Recker made his way back with Bessara a concerned looking Mizari once again approached him with an equally concerned Tyuwari. He sighed before putting his cigarette out.

"It's alright. Whatever your friend here was worried about is done."

The young harpy shook her head frantically. "No, no that's not it."

All of the troops present including Bessara stopped dead in their tracks at the sound of this Recker voicing the concern on their behalf with an ever tensing face.

"What do you mean 'that's not it.'?"

* * *

 _meanwhile..._

 **JADE PALACE TEMPORARY EMBASSY**

Kroger looked across the dining table at Pina and Hamilton with a look of curiosity as the pair continued telling him and the other important dinner guests about their world. Every so often there was a slight pause as the words would be translated back and forth via one of the linguists, but that didn't stop the complete message from getting through.

The old ambassador's eyes scanned all over the elaborate dining hall once more as he admired the Roman style architecture and marble floors. His gaze taking note of the vibrant green tapestries draped over windows.

And the occasional fully armed troops that patrolled past them. Neither MSG or the Japanese were taking any risks.

"I must say. Despite all the ill this war has brought I am nothing short of excited to be here. Your world is a fascinating one your highness, absolutely fascinating. Kroger looked down the table at Jackson and the other DS agents. "Wouldn't you agree Agent Kincaid?"

Even at dinner the agents still hadn't gotten rid of their sidearms, their carbines only an arm's length away under the table. All of them had been relatively quiet throughout most of the evening only occasionally nodding or adding their opinion whenever they were asked to. It wasn't their place to get involved in political festivities even if a great portion of their job meant being right next to it.

The only reason they were in there at all was because Pina had insisted which led to Kroger insisting and the agents weren't in any position to be declining an ambassador's request so easily.

Jackson ran a hand over his bald head and nodded in affirmation. "Yes sir Mister Ambassador. Definitely going to add this to my growing list of exotic locales."

The older agent promptly looked over at Heidigger and Roger. The two had long finished their food and were each taking exceptional care to make their one allotted glass of wine last. The pair simply nodded unsure of what to say before returning their attention to the conversation, meanwhile Sugawara nodded in agreement with the ambassador's statement.

"I agree. Truth be told you could say this is my first time really travelling someplace new. The only places I've ever been are around Japan; I did just get appointed to this position not long ago."

Once the translation got through to the royals Pina shook her head before responding in kind with a warm smile.

"For all the wonder your world has, it never ceases to amaze me how you can still say such a thing gentlemen. You have such power, wealth and technological wonder. No, it is you who's world is truly fascinating to us, though I thank you for your compliments to ours all the same."

There was some more translation before Kroger shook his head.

"Our world is..." He paused as he tried to find the best words to describe how things on Earth were without having to bring up the myriad of growing hot spots or the drama of the upcoming elections.

"Well, let's just say it's nice to experience a completely new change of scenery."

And get away from all the nonsense going on in our world.

Sugawara couldn't help but give the ambassador a look that said "Well said" at that statement. No need for this world to get that intertwined yet, even though it was already being used as a topic of heated debate in the UN and elsewhere.

Pina seemed to understand his response as she promptly changed the subject.

"Have you been to Italica yet Ambassador?"

More translation though Jackson had long understood what had been said. The agent's body language quickly shifted to that of a concerned parent as he began to listen intently.

"No sadly, but I have heard it's the central hub for the area here. Some of the first troops that went through the gate are there am I right?"

Pina nodded. "The very same ones who aided my knights and I in our defense of it." She couldn't help but smile for a moment. She could still remember the vivid image of an agitated Aldritch looking down at her as her superior enemy his tanks behind him with their guns pointed at everyone manning the fortress city's walls.

Back then Pina had just been a girl way over her head. Now both her and her knights could stand shoulder to shoulder with him and the other members of the coalition. She was important to Aldritch and his superiors.

And the captain still didn't know how important he was to her, but she'd let him know someday. When the war was over and when her heart had enough courage.

She was still new to such things after all and something told her gut that he was too.

Pina returned her thoughts to the topic at hand and nodded in affirmation. "Yes, including the tankers. They and Itami's men have been instrumental in helping Italica rise to where it is now."

Jackson couldn't help but smile as a sense of pride filled him.

That's my boy.

Kroger brought his hands together.

"Well I'm sure we can arrange a time to go over there. I still have yet to meet the head of clan formal afterall and I'm sure-" He paused for a moment as he tried to remember something. "Countess Myui was it? Is quite the important person to get to know. She is in charge of such an important place after all. Could be a good spot to pick up all sorts of interesting wares too, wouldn't you say Koji?"

The Japanese ambassador nodded in agreement before looking at his watch. "Quite. In fact, I think Itami and some of his team are on their way here now with ambassador Reiko. He's got a positive reputation among a lot of the higher ups I'm sure he can arrange something."

"Ah, I was wondering when she'd show up. It'll be good to have here so that we can really get the wheels turning on bringing this war to a close."

As the back and forth continued between the two ambassadors Jackson tried to suppress a mixed feeling of guilt and dread growing within. On one hand the thought of seeing his son was a comforting one as it had been months since Japan. On the other hand he had completely neglected to tell Jasper he was there at all, instead telling him he'd probably have to go quiet for a while due to "work".

In the end his son simply went along with it and wished his father the best. It wasn't like the pair weren't used to long periods of silence anyways.

That still didn't make it right for Jackson to lie however. Out of all the lessons he had ever taught Jasper it was to never lie, since lieing was what had caused their family to break apart in the first place. Now here he was going against one of his most important teachings even if his logic for doing so felt sound enough. Thankfully the only people who knew he had family there at all were the other two agents and Jasper's platoon commander.

Pina either didn't care or had simply forgotten as not once during the entire conversation had she mentioned anything.

In the end Jackson could only hope he'd get lucky and arrive on a day where Kincaid was either busy or outside the wire. Given how stable things had slowly started to get in coalition controlled territory however this seemed highly unlikely.

Jackson shook the thought from his mind as he went back to paying attention to the conversation he'd deal with the Jasper situation later.

"So Pina, onto more pressing matters. Be honest with us here: how likely is it for your father to see reason?"

Both the Princess and Hamilton looked at each other with concerned looks for a few moments before Pina spoke up. "To be honest ambassador, I'm not sure. Though it goes without saying that this a conflict the likes of which the Empire has never seen before old habits die hard and my father is very stubborn in his ways."

She shook her head in shame. "It is something my brother Zorzal picked up on too though his method of stubborn is founded on arrogance, ruthlessness and ignorance."

Sugawara brought his hands together. "And what of your brother Diabo? We have yet to see him or even learn anything about him. What's his stance on all this?"

"Diabo has always been an odd one ambassador Sugawara." Pina paused to take a sip from her wine glass before setting it down. In moments Hamilton refilled it as only a dutiful second in command could, getting a nod from the princess.

"Thank you Hamilton. As I was saying Diabo has always been an odd one. He cares not for conquest or domination like my brother does nor is he stubborn like my father. Though his desire for the throne has always been without question his methods for making a move on it are."

Both ambassadors sat confused as Pina continued. "He's a very intelligent man and trumps both my father and Zorzal in his ability to plan things out. The reason you've never seen him is the same reason I hardly ever see him. He's always off doing his own thing and achieving his own goals. Chances are he's just waiting for Zorzal or my father to mess things up before he makes a move on the throne."

Kroger's expression changed to one of concern. "And how will he do that?"

Pina's face remained expressionless as she responded. "Without any resistance at all. Diabo is not one to kill his own kin or anyone else unless absolutely necessary. He's a man of words and wit not of martial prowess."

"But can he be trusted? Is he someone that's going to oppose our goals here?"

"Not unless they interfere with his own."

"And do you think ours do?"

"I can't say for sure ambassador Kroger. What I can say is that should he gain a seat it won't be beyond him to accept an agreement that can bring him substantial gain."

Sugawara put a finger under his chin. "Princess, let me ask you something. Throughout the entirety of this conversation I've noticed you talk as though you have no right to the throne. Why is that? Do you not have as equal a chance as your brothers?"

Pina looked down ashamed as Hamilton put a hand on her shoulder. "I..I wasn't born from the same mother as them. My title as princess is almost ceremonial in nature and the subjects I have is far less than what my brothers have. I'm last in line for the throne."

"I apologize your highness I didn't mean to coerce you into bringing up something you don't feel comfortable talking about."

Pina put a hand up. "It's alright. We are all opening up to each other here and if we are to move forward we can't keep secrets. Trust is everything."

Sugawara nodded. "Indeed it is."

"Well, let me tell you how things are going to work." Kroger took charge as he interlocked his fingers his demeanor changing to that of a man representing one of the most powerful nations in both his world and here. For just a moment everyone else including Pina couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"Your highness? I'll be honest. Neither your brother nor your father are going to be in power if we have anything to say about it. They're going to be apprehended and they're going to answer for the chaos they've caused. They're probably going to be put into a jail cell and sit there for the rest of their lives unless your people wish to have the final say in their fate. Regardless, they will be tried in our world first."

Kroger finished his wine before continuing. "The only person who's going to sit on that throne is one that we know beyond the shadow of a doubt won't cause another Ginza incident. They're going to have to be agreeable with us as well, no lopsided deals and they damn sure won't be ruling over this nation like your father has. I won't lie princess I've been doing some research of my own and looking into how things are run here and I'm not liking it i doubt your people are either. Slavery, racism, xenophobia, religious fanaticism and a corrupt government. This world may have a lot of splendor, but when you peel back the layers you find a hell of a lot of ugly under it. I think koji can agree with me when I say this, but I think this war might force the changes this world needs." Sugawara nodded in agreement before he dropped what he knew was going to be a hell of a shocker to the princess. "And on that note? You're our first choice for a potential replacement on that throne."

Pina began sputtering as she choked on her wine a concerned Hamilton patting her back. Both ambassadors sat unflinching they had known the princess would react like this. Once Pina calmed down she looked at them with a look of confusion.

"M-me? But I've only led a small group of knights. There's no way I'm fit to rule over a kingdom and I doubt my people will agree."

I don't even have someone to rule beside...

Kroger shook his head. "Your highness, there's leadership within all of us, we just gotta reach down deep and find it when we need it the most. You've made it this far and have met with not only us but the very leaders of Koji and I's respective countries. Against all confusion and adversity you've maintained your posture and kept going forward when others might have long given pause. Your people will see that and if they don't we'll be sure to put out the good word for you."

"But I don't know ho-"

Sugawara smiled warmly. "We're here to teach you your highness. We'll help you get to where you need to go. I know this may seem like a lot to process but we're not budging on our decision. Diabo is too much of an enigma to trust and until he proves us otherwise we can't rely on him."

Pina sat there unsure of what to say for a few moments. A great deal of weight had just been placed upon her shoulders and she had no idea what to say. She needed to talk to Aldritch - he always knew what to say to keep her calm.

"I'll need time to think on this. I-I just don't know what to say."

Kroger nodded. "Take your time. Though it's not beyond our power to do so the war isn't ending tomorrow."

Sugawara chuckled at this. "Always a way with words."

"Comes with the job."

Suddenly the massive door to the dining hall opened, cutting off the conversation from proceeding any further. Everyone turned their attention as Bozes walked in with Itami and some of his team, Shino and Tomita this time. Following them was ambassador Reiko Shirayuri. She had forgone the usual formal attire for something more practical: A flak vest over a plain buttoned shirt and jeans. Once the group made their presence known, Bozes introduced them.

"Your highness, esteemed guests from Japan and America. Itami and ambassador Reiko Shirayuri are here."

Reiko looked confused for a few moments as she noticed a still distraught Pina. "Well, it looks like I've missed something."

Sugawara and Kroger merely nodded with the former speaking on their behalf. "Oh not so much, we were just getting started."

As Reiko handed her vest to Tomita and went to take her seat Shino looked over at Jackson and waved with a big grin. Jackson could only sigh and wave back as Itami did his best not to facepalm.

"Sorry Jackson..."

* * *

 **2040 HOURS, FOB ITALICA**

It was another typical evening for the tankers of Headquarters platoon. The sound of banter mixed with music and rumbling generators as Marines went about their evening trying to get whatever measure of relaxation in they could.

Unless a QRF got drummed up.

"Hey, anyone see Kenny?"

"I think he's in his fucking cargo container thing watching his weird Japanese cartoons again. Why?"

"Yeah well my fucking shit was acting up today. Goddamn uh...MRS *****. I already talked to the mechanics and they're confused too."

"Yeah go talk to him, we're doing Boresight* tomorrow anyways. Just be careful, you know how grumpy he gets."

By now many of the Marines were wearing an odd mishmash of clothing ranging from issued FROG gear and clothing items, off duty apparel to even some clothing they had picked up in Falmart. It was an unspoken rule that as a long as you had your weapon nearby, weren't tasked for anything and weren't completely out of regs you'd usually be left alone.

None of the Marines could be seen without their weapons and they were certainly following the other aspects of the unspoken rule. Even Aldritch wasn't free of this as he cleaned his M4 with Johnson in an OD green hoodie and FROG bottoms.

The crew of Here We Go Again was no exception to this either as they sat out under their area's cammo netting and joined the rest of the platoon in whatever evening activities were going on.

"Hey Kincaid, you still got that Lazerhawk song I transferred to you a while back?"

Kincaid tried to get a glimpse of Dunn out of the corner of his eye at the sound of his question. He could just barely make him out sitting next to Lelei on one of the fold out tables as they fussed around with his 3DS. Kincaid promptly called back to Dunn over the sound of buzzing as he sat ramrod straight in his chair. "Yeah? Why?"

"Think you can play it? Lelei wants to hear it and I can't find it on my phone."

"Yeah." Kincaid shifted his attention to his barber. "Hey Aurea you think you can play that song? It's called So Far Awa-"

Kincaid felt a squeeze on his shoulder as corrective action was applied. "I know what song it is, but ask me the right way."

"Why? You know I can't be doing that out in the open."

"Nobody will hear. Please?"

"Why though?"

"Because I like it?"

Seeing he had no chance of winning Kincaid sighed. "Baby? Can you play the song-"

Wilkes quickly interrupted as he chuckled from behind a Maxim magazine he was reading. He had just taken his headphones off for a moment when he heard the dialogue. "BAY BAY PWEAAASE?"

"Man shut the hell up. You know damn well you got no room to talk, where's your 'boo thang'?"

"...Bruh fuck you."

"That's what I thought."

Aurea ignored the banter between the two as she changed the song on Kincaid's phone with a smile. Once the tune began to play Lelei gave a thumbs up before returning her attention to watching Dunn's play on his 3DS. The pair both grimaced and laughed as they tried to beat some new creature in Monster Hunter.

* * *

 **Kincaid's Album of Awesome**

 **Track 33: Lazerhawk "So Far Away"**

 _ **Play?**_

* * *

As the song and evening continued Yao reflected back on the events leading up to where she was now. The dark elf lit a cigarette gifted to her from earlier, ensuring to click the menthol tab before taking a long drag and letting out a cloud of smoke.

The dinner meet and greet had been a short but insightful affair. Yao had been able to see just how intertwined the local populace and the Coalition were as both the Formal clan and the troops conversed like as if they were old friends. None of the beast people were treated as unequal and the strange girls that had arrived acted like as if they were practically family with the Marines.

Old stories including the one of the legendary dragon fight were retold in vivid detail as Marines waved their hands about much to Yao's amusement, even Rory and the others had a few stories to tell.

At one point some of Itami's team had showed up to let Aldritch know Itami was off taking care of business and would be unavailable for some time. Every so often an accompanying Kurokawa would pause from tending to Tuka to glare at Aurea whenever the maid strayed too close. Yao promised herself she'd look into that matter later.

Eventually the team left and with them the Major and Myui leaving two of her maids, Mamina and Aurea, with the Marines.

The dark elf had learned a great many things that evening. Thing such as how Rory considered the Marines her sons or how the wizard in training Lelei had completely began to immerse herself in their music and culture. A Marine by the name of Dunn had gotten her into a strange type of music known as "Ray-v" and "Senth-stream" from their world. The pair could occasionally be seen looking at a strange device as they put cords into their ears and moved their heads to a song Yao couldn't hear.

She had also learned about Tuka and why the elf was relatively quiet. Her people had been a victim of the Fire Dragon as well her father having been one of its prominent victims. The elf made Yao feel uneasy and not because high and dark elves had always been at odds with each other, but because of how she acted. Apparently she considered Itami her father and Kurokawa her mother.

A blind man could see how far gone she was.

Yao deduced she would either wake up and see the truth or be forever lost in her own insanity. Either way she saw Tuka as weak - someone who had completely given into their emotions. Yao had lost friends she considered brothers and sisters but that had never brought her low. Instead she harnessed that loss and turned it into a desire for revenge.

These men would help her get that revenge.

Feeling satisfied she returned her attention to the odd couple under one of the strange overhead lights. Not like Mamina or Benitez were any better the warrior rabbit dwarfed her male by a good couple inches as the pair played with Pollo. Occasionally the bird would get too uppity for his own good for a few moments as a chicken entered his territory, only to receive a swift disciplinary headlock from an agitated Mamina.

Everyone in front of Yao was the most bizarre assortment of people she'd ever seen, but also the most whole. Like family.

Kincaid relaxed in the metal chair as he felt the electric clippers buzz more of his ever diminishing hair away, the feeling of hair falling away giving him a slight tickle every so often.

Or perhaps it was the snakes. He couldn't be sure at this point even if Aurea swore multiple times she wasn't trying to tickle him.

As it turned out, the Medusa was surprisingly skilled with a razor among other things, her time as the formal clan's chief groomer having secured her place in the mansion. Teaching her to operate clippers was a relatively simple endeavor and her unusual hair would often aid her in holding whatever she needed to get the job done.

In a short period of time she became the platoon's barber and every Sunday she'd show up with Mamina to ensure the Marines stayed in regs. It was a win-win, the Marines got free haircuts and the two maids had an excuse to get out of the mansion and see the men they were unofficially "dating". Aurea always made it a habit to cut Aldritch's hair first and Kincaid's last so as to win favors with the platoon commander and keep any suspicion of favoritism away.

Not that the platoon hadn't already long figured out what was going on.

One of Aurea's strands of "hair" lowered the volume on the speaker Kincaid's phone was playing through so that he could hear her, the Medusa's focus was unwavering as she continued to buzz hair away. "Dearest I don't understand why you want to shave it all off. Your receding hairline doesn't bother me."

"Because it's annoying when I have to wear helmets and if I'm going to go bald I might as well get it over and done with now. Also, no cutesie names out here. It's troubling enough with you and Mamina bringing this much attention to us."

"You worry about Mari too much. I have won your affections and you have won mine, if she doesn't like it than she talk to me about it."

Kincaid sighed. "I'd really rather not see a cat fight break out Aurea. It's bad enough I did what I did."

Aurea buzzed another row a of hair away. "Nonsense. You didn't belong to either of us back then and against all adversities you still chose me. I care not for your old nights bedding females. You are a man now and were a man before you met me, of course you'd have your needs. I'm the only one tending to them now so it matters not-"

"Aurea..."

"Sorry dearest."

The pair went quiet for a few moments as Aurea continued to work.

"You still having that weird feeling from earlier?"

"Yeah...it's not going away."

"Is it..you know. One of those again?"

Aurea shook her head. "No those are quick and just long enough for me to get hit with a wave of emotion. This feels different, makes me feel uneasy. Like something is coming."

Kincaid furrowed his brow. "Look if you're not feeling well go get some rest after this. It's probably just anxiety or lack of sleep it's been a pretty busy couple weeks and I'm sure you were up late last night." He felt another squeeze on his shoulder in quick order. "I'm fine I promise. You're right though I probably just need some rest. You'll walk me back later right?"

"Of course."

Kincaid watched as one of the snakes hovered in front of his face, its unsettling beady black eyes staring into his as it flicked its tongue.

"Yeah? Can I help you?"

If it understood him it certainly wasn't listening.

"You got news from the front lines? What?"

It still hovered there.

"Aight outta here." Kincaid moved a hand up and waved the bothersome serpent away eliciting a chuckle from Yao. He raised an eyebrow at the dark elf as she put out her cigarette.

"What's so funny?"

Yao put a finger under her chin and shook her head as she leaned back against the table her chair was near. "Nothing, you're just the oddest couple I've ever seen. I don't mean to pry, but how exactly did you two-"

Kincaid grimaced. "Well that's a funny thing to say. I mean, you're already kinda prying right?"

"I apologize I meant nothing ill by it."

Kincaid felt a cool sensation as a snake loosely coiled around his neck, its owner's voice turning soft as she continued to work. "We understand each other. He sees me for who I really am and I see him for who he really is. We're two pods in a pea."

"I think you mean two peas in a pod..." Kincaid rolled his eyes. "You really like using that line don't you?"

"Very much so. Your world is filled with all sorts of interesting phrases."

"Yeah well there you have it. We're both weirdos."

Yao couldn't believe what she was hearing. The pair had completely brushed away years of genocide and racism during the presumably short course of their relationship and all they could say was a silly phrase to justify it.

Like it was the most natural thing.

As for Kurokawa, Yao deduced it wouldn't be wise to bring that topic up. Aurea had already answered whatever questions she might have had. An old fling that hadn't been properly closed. The elf looked over at the other couple and their strange pet for a few moments, taking note that the Kyckling was having an incredibly difficult time out running the rabbit woman as they tried to play tag. Yao knew she didn't need an explanation for that pairing the woman had obviously found some sort of redeeming quality about the Marine and held it above any other features he might have had.

Or maybe she just enjoyed the empowering feeling of having a smaller male. Some females had strange tastes.

The more Yao thought on the matter the more it began to dawn on her, she had noticed a large amount of interracial mingling. One of Itami's men by the name of Kurata had been awfully comfortable around another one of the formal clan's maids, one of the felines. Even one of the Marines accompanying Joyce had a mate of his own, another feline this one dressed in their attire though. Yao was no fool she could read body language better than anyone else and as slick as these couples had thought they were she could tell they were more than just good friends.

The question was, _**why?**_ What made these soldiers from beyond the gate look past all that? How could they willingly ignore the uneasiness humans had had with the other species for years? It wasn't like their world had the same sort of humanoid diversity.

Yao tried to push the thought aside. One thing at a time, once the dragon was dead and her people secured then she'd worry about all the mysteries of the coalition.

Suddenly Kincaid's yell threw off her train of thought as the Marine got up clutching his head. Whatever peace there might have been before was immediately crushed as the weight of what felt like hundreds of eyes fell down upon her, the music stopping in short order.

"Fuck, agh damnit!" Kincaid kept a hand pressed down on the top of his now bald head as a distressed Aurea tried to find a cloth, her worried voice began to shoot off a string of apologies as she began to dab his head. There was a genuine look of concern in her face like as if she had committed a crime of the highest magnitude and was worried about the impending punishment.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please I didn't mean to! Are you okay?! I'm sorry!"

By now most of the Marines had dropped what they were doing and were all watching the spectacle, Yao noticed a few already had hands hovering over their weapons. Elton had been conversing with Aldritch when his gunner's yell immediately kicked off his warning siren. As the crew's tank commander he was the first to run over and ensure one of his crew members was alright.

"Yo what the hell's going on?"

Kincaid put a hand up. "It's good she just cut me a little." He then raised his voice loud enough for the rest of the platoon to hear as he looked around to address them all. "It's all good! Just an accident!"

The Marines exchanged confused looks before shrugging, a few sending off mandatory insults calling Kincaid a baby before going back to what they were doing. Aldritch shook his head before returning his attention to his carbine.

Wilkes let out a sigh as he holstered his M9. "Goddamn man don't fucking do that shit again."

"You're the one drawing your weapon you should be the one calming down."

Wilkes glared at Kincaid his eyes burrowing into his gunner's as his voice hit a level of seriousness he rarely used. "Can you honestly blame me? Seriously?"

Kincaid shook his head. "Yeah point taken..."

"Yeah exactly." Wilkes shifted his glance over to the still distraught Medusa. "No hard feelings aight? I already lost one brother I ain't losing another."

Aurea nodded, still too ashamed to say anything. Meanwhile Elton took a look at Kincaid's head examining the damage for a few seconds before rolling his eyes. "Fucking had me worried n' shit. You're good just have doc look at it later maybe, slap a band-aid on it or something."

"Yeah sorry man." Kincaid gingerly pat the top of his head to ensure he wasn't bleeding. Satisfied that wasn't the case he turned his attention to his distraught partner.

"Hey it's alright we all make mistakes. Everyone here knows you're good at what you do." He put a hand on either one of her shoulders. "You sure you're okay?"

"I-" Aurea sighed. "No, I don't think so. I think I'm just stressed out or something."

"Still that same feeling from earlier?"

"Yes, but it's gotten worse. A lot worse."

Elton raised an eyebrow at this statement. "What's up now?"

"She said she had this bad feeling earlier. Like something bad was coming." Kincaid continued to rub his partner's shoulders. "I think it's just anxiety or..you know."

"Yeah probably. Told you there was gonna be repercussions to what happened. When you go opening shit up and looking inside sometimes something bites back ain't always pleasant either."

Aurea nodded her snakes still hung limp in shame. "Yes, you're right."

Kincaid looked over at his tank commander. "Hey I'm gonna take her back to the mansion make sure she gets there alright. Can you log me out on the accountability board?"

"Aight, I'll log Benitez out too. I'm sure he's gonna-"

Elton had to give pause as a new breed of chaos once again broke whatever peace had just been re-established, this time the source coming in the form of avian shrieking. Something had absolutely terrified Pollo in a way the platoon had never seen before. The bird's feathers jutted up as his head twitched every which way his normally proud stoic eyes wide open as he began to panic.

Mamina and Benitez tried their best to calm the large bird down but to push the matter any further would likely be a dangerous endeavor.

"For god's sake what the fuck is going on!?" An agitated Aldritch got up from his chair once more as he made his way over to the scene his M4 at the ready. "See!? This is exactly why I told you to get rid of that bird Lance Corporal!"

Suddenly a new voice rose above all others one everyone knew all too well.

"It's not the bird's fault."

Rory's. The apostle had been characteristically out of sight and out of mind throughout the evening choosing to sit off alone as she crossed her legs and meditated in silence on one of the other tables. Nobody had questioned it before and for good reason, a quiet night without Rory was a godsend.

But now as the sounds of more and more panic began to grow throughout Italica everyone couldn't help but listen to what she had to say. Troops both Marines, Japanese and otherwise began to be put on edge and radios began to blare with the sounds of activity. To make matters worse Pollo wasn't the only animal starting to go ballistic. Working dogs and various livestock began to add to the cacophony of noise.

"She's here."

Aldritch raised an eyebrow as he pointed a finger at Rory." What the hell do you mean she's here?! Rory I don't like this, I need some fucking answers and I need em now!"

Rory got up and clutched her nearby halberd her voice slowly growing more and more tense. "Hardy, she's here. Steel yourselves my sons."

Yao stammered over her words as she tried to maintain her composure. "Hardy?! Why? Why would she do something like this? She's never done anything to my people!"

Rory shook her head. "Why _**wouldn't**_ she do something like this? You have a lot to learn about who your worship."

Johnson scoffed. "For christ's sake not this Hardy nonsense again."

"Sergeant you know better than that." Lelei's eyes went wide as she clutched her staff and prepared herself for whatever was coming. "You know remember what you saw in that forest near Crety."

Alrdritch shook his head. "You know we don't talk about that Lelei."

"But it's true."

Aldritch wanted to challenge the absurdity of it all even after everything he had seen so far. He was still a Marine officer one that clung to SOP* and normalcy as much as possible. If there was enemy he could kill it if there was an obstacle he could overcome it. To hear that a goddess was about to send some great calamity down was nonsense.

Even if all the signs pointed to it.

He went to say something before Aurea screamed and held her head in pain, her snakes flying in distress. Kincaid quickly kept his hands on her shoulders as he tried to calm her down.

"What's going on!? Aurea? Speak to me!"

"We need to run! We need to run far away from here!"

"Run away from what? Hardy!? What?"

Suddenly Kincaid felt the air leave his lungs as his world started to shake around him. The ground began to tremble and screaming began to echo all throughout Italica as order began to fall apart.

Earthquake.

Kincaid instinctively wrapped his around around his terrified girlfriend and carried her away from the nearby quadcons as he tried to keep her as safe as he could.

Oblivious to a startled but enraged Kurokawa that had came back with Tuka.

* * *

During the entirety of the Coalition's stay in Falmart thus far, it had adapted and prepared for just about every conceivable threat. Magic, apostles, all manners of beasts, the Empire itself.

Even threats of the biological nature had to be considered after the Crety Incident. The Four Horsemen, members of RCT3, CBRN units and Special Forces that had been involved in the quarantine and subsequent raid into the dark forest all knew and vividly remembered what they had seen.

Zombies.

The stuff of Hollywood had quickly became the stuff of reality along with everything else the coalition had encountered. Thankfully being the stuff of fiction meant the incident had been handled without any casualties. Unlike Hollywood all the troops involved knew exactly where to shoot and how to conduct themselves in the presence of the undead. Not even the Minotaur or Cockatrice had fared well in the end the former's horns being a war prize on Horsemen Three after careful decontamination.

Having Rory's assistance and knowledge had also been helpful.

For all it had seen however, never once had the coalition ever considered the possibility of natural disasters. In its defense, with the exception of the occasional storm or odd cold front, it had no reason to. None of the people had ever mentioned earthquakes, tornadoes or any of the other natural disasters found back on earth.

That was because none of the people could readily recall a time where they had experienced any. The earthquake had been one of the first of such a magnitude to ever hit the continent and the coalition would come to find out the shocking truth why in the coming days.

Regardless, the people of Falmart had felt like their world was about to end.

Not on the coalition's watch.

In every base, all the troops provided whatever comfort and protection they could to the people in their care. If long range radios went silent due to power fluctuations, orders were relayed via short wave radios. Sensitive items were secured as best they could by scrambling technicians and some of the most important assets were moved away from anywhere that could potentially damage them. Platoons maintained accountability throughout the chaos as they listened to the orders of those who had experienced earthquakes before. The Japanese in particular were experts in dealing with earthquakes back home and as such they buckled down and waited out the storm against an old foe.

Throughout all this chaos however, two groups remained oblivious as they dutifully carried out their missions. Both would go on to cement their reputations in both Falmart and Earth.

* * *

 **STREETS OF AKUSHO**

Bessara panicked as he fled as fast as he could down the winding streets of Akusho, doing his best to maintain his balance as the world shook around him. It was utter chaos everywhere he looked. People screamed to the gods for salvation as market stalls were thrown into disarray. Fragile foundations shook and a ramshackle hut fell apart here and there, trapping whatever occupants had been inside. Torches fell from unsecured wall mounts and splashed flames against whatever they fell against and in short order the telltale sign of fire began to appear as red smoke began to fill the night air.

None of this mattered to the crime lord however. All that mattered was getting to his family and away from all of this. Away from the _**demons**_ that were chasing him.

No, not demons. They were mortal men but the way they carried out their deeds was inhuman.

Before the earthquake had hit, Bessara had been sitting in a chair being interrogated by an increasingly irritated Recker. When the news had hit him that no matter what happened he would be put in a jail cell for conspiring against them his heart had sank. The idea of never seeing his daughter grow up was a terrifying one.

Yet somehow fate had intervened in the most unlikely of ways and when the world began to shake he saw his opportunity to make a run for it quickly pushing through his captors.

It was a decision he was quickly coming to regret a quick glance around his shoulder confirming his fears.

They were still chasing him.

Bessara pushed through an absolutely terrified Imperial patrol not bothering to look back as more tell tale snaps and pops of Recker's strange weaponry rang out. No matter how well Bessara knew the area no matter what route he took the soldiers still wouldn't give up. He could see them from time to time their dark shapes and the telltale horns of whatever allowed them to see him clear as day.

He wasn't sure what to be terrified of the earthquake, his family's safety or the men chasing him.

 **XXXXXXX**

"He's turning ri-FUCK secure the women!"

"Goddamnit Gomorrah, get your shit together!"

"Roger that. He's turning right. You guys aren't far from his place either. Better hurry up too cause I'm seeing his buddies making their way over from the east, they're pretty shook up now but I don't expect that to last long."

Recker listened to the fractured radio chatter as he turned another corner, two of his men including Lentz right behind him. With the dexterity of years training in obstacle courses, the three vaulted over another overturned cart. No sooner had they done so one of the other SEALS racked his 870 and blasted an Imperial soldier off his feet and into a market stall as the chase continued.

For all the anger he had for the situation there were things he could still be thankful for. First the connection to their short range UAV was still up. The little drone buzzed away above them as it darted to and fro throughout the air. Second, the gear the SEALS wore enabled them to keep up with Bessara as they sprinted around the twists and turns. Even the quad eye NVGs remained remarkably stable throughout the ordeal

Finally and most importantly Bessara was too stocky to outrun them. Years of training beat whatever sort of natural skill the crime lord might have had.

Recker talked through labored breathing as the SEALS hit another intersection each man covering a respective alley. "Alright Gomorrah where's he heading now?"

"Wait one."

By this point the lieutenant couldn't hear the prostitutes shrieking in the background anymore. Either they were too scared to say anything or someone had got in their face. Either way it made for much cleaner transmissions.

The earthquake had also completely died down as well. For something so violent it was short lived.

"Boss, make a left and then another right and you'll get there. I'd really hurry too if I were you Bessara just got the welcome party. Looks like they're having one liners and shit for now though."

"How many?"

"Not a lot, looks like we killed most of em."

"Yeah but not all of them if they were able to get word out about what happened." Recker turned to his men and made a low whistle with the accompanying hand and arm signals. In moments the team took off down the path necessary to reach their target and the fight that awaited them.

 **XXXXXXX**

In a small elaborate courtyard in his own estate Bessara tried to reason with his former comrades in crime. The words coming out of their mouths were beyond reason and with his hands tied the crime lord felt the situation leaving his control more and more with every second.

Unless they could get there in time.

"This is madness Draigo! How can you solely lay the blame on me when the plan was a group decision!?"

"Because you agreed to lead our guys. You said you knew our old clients better than anyone else."

"No, I said I worked with them a great many times! Do not twist my words around!"

Bessara glared at the scruffy looking felinid crime lord and his men. "All of you pushed me into the position using majority vote. You know how we do business!"

The rival crime lord unsheathed his sword and growled behind glistening fangs at Bessara's accusation. "Whether you were forced or not it was still _**your**_ responsibility! You failed us and got our boys killed. Do you have any idea how much damage we'll have to fix now? The losses we've sustained?! It'll take months to get back to where we were before!"

"By the gods, what is with you people!? Nothing will ever get back to where it was before! Our world is falling apart and otherworldly armies are laying waste to anything that opposes them! Our days are done, we're not in control anymore! The Empire isn't in control anymore!"

Draigo clenched a clawed fist as he shook his head. "What's this? Just a few hours ago you were acting like it was business as usual. Could it be because you almost died that you've gone soft?"

Bessara couldn't help but grit his teeth for a few moments. It was true he had went before that whorehouse with all the swagger and confidence of a man who felt like a winner, but there was a good reason for it. Neither him nor the other crime lords had ever anticipated how strong a small group of men could be. They couldn't be outsmarted, couldn't be out muscled, could see everything that went on all around them. Not once had any of the gangsters ever seen the other worldly soldiers fight either. All they knew was that the soldiers paid them for their services and used whatever information given them to cause disorder somewhere.

The crime lord kept his gaze fixated at the ground as he hit Draigo with the cold hard truth. "You know they're coming for you too."

Draigo a hand to his ear at Bessara's mumbling. "Come again?"

"You know they're coming for you too, they know who got the plan together. None of us are surviving this in the end, but perhaps if you run now-"

"Nonsense! I run from no man! And if it is my time to go you can be damned sure I'll inflict as much pain on you as possible." Draigo pointed to Bessara's terrified wife and daughter watching through one of the windows. "Starting with them and ending with you!"

Bessara yelled at the top of his lungs as his old comrade snapped his fingers for his men to charge the mansion. "You goddamn coward! I'm the issue here not them, if there's anyone who needs to suffer it's me!"

"Idle threats from a man who turned tail and ran where others died, you'll get your due." Draigo chuckled as his men made their way closer to the mansion's front door. "Make sure you share."

As the door to his home was slowly opened Bessara's eyes went wide with fear. If only he had listened to Recker then perhaps none of this would happen, all of the events leading to this were his fault too. Becoming a crime lord with a family, agreeing to work with Recker and his men.

Betraying them.

Suddenly the sound of a cord being snapped caused everyone to give pause even as the sudden explosion rung out from behind the door Draigo's men had just opened. As the smoke cleared both crime lords and any of Draigo's men that had stayed back began to realize what had happened.

The door had been booby trapped the chewed up pieces of gangsters splayed about all over the place confirmed this. Before Draigo could even direct his mens' wrath to Bessara a new chorus of destruction began in the form of teeth chattering thumps that lit up the courtyard. Green lights danced through Draigo and his men as they were torn apart piece by piece. This time the killing was thorough and anyone who tried to run were immediately set upon by dark shadows with blades that glistened in the light.

When the killing finally stopped Bessara's eyes scanned back over to the window his wife and daughter had been in. He could still see them, which was a sight that brought his heart peace.

And almost caused it to stop when he saw one of the shadows right behind them waving at him.

Suddenly the crime lord felt his world spin as he was yanked off the ground and turned around to face an irritated Recker, his face hidden behind strange goggles.

"So, can we talk _**now?**_ "

* * *

 _During that same time_

 **2300 HOURS, SKIES ABOVE FALMART**

Far above the chaos going on below, the two F35s of Lightning Flight continued their nightly recon patrol. Their sleek sharp edged wings cut through the skies as they flew with an unmatched and most importantly unseen elegance. From the moment they had entered Falmart they had performed above expectation. They didn't need GPS to be a lethal asset and their last run in with the dragon had allowed the pilots to trick their helmets out with art courtesy of some Japanese pilots they had become good friends with.

Even if they hadn't killed the beast.

Willhelm stifled a yawn as he eyed the thermal outline of the world below the vision provided by his helmet looking through his aircraft as if it weren't there. He could see everything, trees, distant mountains.

The clearly panicking animals. Herds of creatures scattered as if their very lives depended on it and flocks of birds left their trees as they sought the safety of the skies above. Willhelm raised an eyebrow as he called in to his wingman.

"Hey Lightning two you seeing all this shit going on down below?"

The captain watched as the other F35 did a gentle bank over the top of him before leveling out on his side. "Yeah I'm seeing it. The hell's going on? They look spooked as all hell."

"Yeah-"

 _ **As you wish your holiness. This will be more than enough of a sign for these heretics until our pet returns to health.**_

Willhelm blinked his eyes and shook his head as a faint female voice filled his ears his helmet's display fuzzing up for a bit before returning back to its original clarity. The Captain sat there quietly for a few moments unsure of what to say. His wingman quickly confirmed he wasn't losing his mind however.

"Okay. Two this is One, I uh. You, having any interference?"

"Yeah no, I heard it too Two."

Both pilots remained quiet as they continued to guide their aircraft through a now uneasy night's sky.

Willhelm promptly regained his composure as he flipped through a few radio channels on his dash. "I'm calling it in Two. Let's RTB and see what the engineers have to say, better safe than sorry."

"Solid."

The captain found the channel he was looking for and remained as calm as he could as he transmitted what had just happened back to Alnus. "Tower Tower this is Lightning One. Be advised, no sign of hostile activity on the ground or the sky though uh..."

The thought of the voice filled his head once more before he shook it off.

"We're seeing some pretty strange things on the ground. Looks like all the wildlife is freaking out over something. Everything good on your end?"

Nothing.

"Tower Tower this is Lightning, radio check over."

A few more moments of silence.

"Willhelm? What the hell's going on?"

"I don't know Two. Maybe their radios are on the fritz? Maybe there's some sort of seismic disturbance?"

"What, like an earthquake?"

"I don't know brother."

Willhelm continued to scan around his cockpit to ensure everything was in good order. They still had fuel and still had ammo. If worst came to worst their aircrafts' VTOL capability could allow them to safely land anywhere friendly if the runway was less than stellar.

"Alright Two check it out. Lets loop back around and head back to Alnus. Maybe they'll have it figured out by then they, I'm sure they're trying to get back in touch with us."

"Solid. Wait, hold up. I'm getting something on my scope. 12 o' clock."

Willhelm looked at his radar and then through his visor, sure enough he could see something.

"One, I'm getting a lot of signals here. Oh crap..."

Willhelm couldn't help but squint as he saw a swarm of streaking white forms flitting through the air.

Dragons, wyverns to be exact. It was a swarm the likes had which hadn't been seen since the earliest days of the coalition's time in the continent. Most of them had been driven off but this group looked like it was going somewhere.

"You think they're panicked? Earthquake or something?"

Willhelm cross checked his map and then his radar before shaking his head. "No, look at how they're flying. They're moving like they got a purpose." He cross checked the coordinates once more as a feeling of realization hit him. "They're heading towards at Alnus and Italica."

Lightning Two's F35 created some spacing as it started designating targets and feeding the information to Willhelm's screen. "That means they're our problem doesn't it?"

Willhelm secured his oxygen mask and readied his weapon systems as he narrowed his eyes. "Until we know they're good, yeah. No telling what's going on with their AA. If the power's out you can be damn sure the C-RAMs ***** are offline though."

The captain eyed his ammo loadout with concern. Like his wingman he had twelve AAMRAMs ***** and 480 rounds for his gunpod, that meant they had twenty-four missiles and 960 rounds between the two and them.

That meant they had to make every shot count.

Two bases and countless personnel left in the dark were relying on them right now whether they knew it or not. As Willhelm locked multiple wyverns in his visor and let off a salvo of missiles he knew they wouldn't let them down either.

* * *

 **Jargon/Acronyms Used**

 **MRS-Muzzle Reference Sensor.**

 **Hookay, lemme dumb this down. When you fire too many rounds through the maingun the barrel starts to warp due to high temperatures, it's invisible to the naked eye but it's there. The MRS accounts for that warping and feeds data back so that the gunner can compensate for it. Push some buttons do a quick MRS update and you're tits on once more.**

 **C-RAM-Counter Rocket Artillery Mortar. You know those BRRRT guns on ships? Yeah same thing only this one can also hit rockets, mortars, artillery shells. It fires self destructing rounds that explode on impact or tracer burnout to mitigate collateral damage. You can guess why the coalition brought em to Falmart.**

 **AAMRAM-** **Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile**


	31. Pardon my dust and sorry for the hiatus

I know you all got the E-mail and probably hopped into this chapter with mixed anticipation. Half of you anticipating to see another chapter to this roller coaster of a story and the other half anticipating to start listing off more reasons as to why this is another "Wank" story.

To the former apologies but you'll have to wait just a little bit longer. To the latter I haven't even begun to drown you in some of that good Marine Corps Motivation. So don't you worry, the ass kicking and LOGIC will continue.

The unfortunate truth of writing here is that there's no other method to reaching out to readers as efficient as putting out update chapters. It notifies readers and with the ability to name chapters it lets them know exactly what's coming up. Why do I do things like this? Because I actually honest to god have enough respect for my readers to let them know what's going on and why the story they enjoy has been on hiatus.

To those who've been waiting thanks for your patience.

I'll cut through the dramatic bullshit and get down to business. Last couple months I was burnt out and not necessarily because I've been swimming in drafts and excerpts for upcoming chapters. Long story short? School was just grinding me down and whenever I had free time I used it to do the things I enjoy doing. Not saying that writing isn't something I enjoy, but rather after I've been sitting in front of a computer typing papers and studying the last thing I want to do is tax my brain even more trying to entertain people.

By the way finals went good so I'm good n' ready to transfer to an actual four year college. Crayons or some shit.

Anyways, coupled with other things a single vet has to deal with I was pretty well and worn out. Which was why I've been taking these last couple weeks to just turn off my brain and enjoy my well deserved time off.

All things come to an end however and for me that means my brain's need for a rest. So yes, this means I'm right back to working on this zoo of a story. To those who've been with this story since the beginning thanks for your patience. I've been jerking you around harder than the average troop with his peter in a portajohn a few days into the field.

Truth be told I'll probably be doing it more cause, you know, there's always something I don't like :).

Which reminds me. Since you guys have been patient allow me to reward that with some more good news. Once this story is done I'll be working on another Gate piece. However, this one will consist of all the stuff I wanted/you wanted to see in the actual story but couldn't fit in due to plot and cohesion. You remember all those holiday filler chapters? Think that but bigger and showing more. This story will be 100% for fun and I'll be open for ideas for what sort of shenanigans you'd guys would want to see.

So long as they aren't so over the top and completely cringey.

Anyways hope you guys have had a good holiday season. With New Years coming up here's to a hell of a last year and no doubt one hell of an upcoming one. I still have quite a number of weeks before school kicks off again. Anywho back to the grind and I will see YOU in the next chapter. I'll be deleting this a day before the next chapter comes out. So if you see this update chapter gone, you know what the hell's about to go down.


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